Google was accused in a lawsuit of using its Gemini AI assistant t
o unlawfully track the private communications of users of its Gmail, ins
tant messaging and videoconference programs.
In the past, users of Gmail, Chat and Meet were given the option to turn on Google’s artificial intelligence p
rogram. But in October, the Alphabet Inc. unit “secretly” turned on Gemini for all those applications, enabling
it to collect private data “without the users’ knowledge or consent,” according to the complaint fil
ed late Tuesday in federal court in San Jose, California.
While the company allows users to turn off Gemini, they need to
dig into Google’s privacy settings to deactivate the AI tool, according to the proposed class-action suit. Unless th
ey take that step, Google uses Gemini to “access and exploit the entire recorded history of its users’ private comm
unications, including literally every email and attachment sent an
d received in their Gmail accounts,” according to the complaint.
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The suit alleges that Google is violating the California Invasion of Privacy Act, a 1967 law that prohibits surrep
titious wiretapping and recording of confidential communications witho
ut the consent of all parties involved.
Google didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment outside regular business hours.
Raoul said in a statement that State Farm is preventing IDOI fr
om obtaining information to help make sure all Illinois homeowners are being treated fairly.
“State insurance departments are the primary regulators of insurance companies, so it is crucially importan
t that State Farm, headquartered in Illinois, cooperate with the depa
rtment’s oversight of its business practices,” Raoul said.
The lawsuit was filed months after State Farm implemented a 2
7% rate increase for Illinoi
s homeowners. The rate increase drew attention from Illinois Governor
J.B. Prtizker and other state leaders.
State Farm this week the rate increase was supported with a 32-page long rate filing that includes detail
ed actuarial analysis. The insurer has said Illinois homeowners insuran
ce rates are increasing due to increased frequency of severe storms.