Email users will have a field day knowing that Google failed to convince a judge just a few days ago that Gmail keyword scanning didn't violate wiretap laws. And this ruling is apparently being used by a pair of non-Yahoo users to slap a class-action privacy lawsuit this time against Yahoo.
The plaintiffs claim that Yahoo scanned incoming emails to serve more targeted ads, and that Yahoo was effective in intercepting and reading their mails. As non-users, they argue that they didn't agree to the searches, and they're filing suit on behalf of all other Americans who sent mail to Yahoo.
The case isn't exactly like the class-action suit against Google — which included Gmail account holders as well as non-users — but it uses the same basic argument, and Yahoo will likely mount a pretty similar defense.
Google argued that if you were sending emails to one of its users, you implicitly understood that Google was going to scan them and that you were voluntarily giving up information to a third party, which removes the legal right to absolute privacy. It also said that scanning emails was a standard part of its business model, which could theoretically let it off the hook.
In 2003, a web service known as Scroogled! was launched to allow users to perform Google searches anonymously. It focused heavily on searcher privacy by blocking Google cookies and not saving log files. The service was developed by Google critic Daniel Brandt, who was concerned about Google collecting personal information on its users.
Judge Lucy Koh, however, said that Google's arguments weren't strong enough to get the suit automatically thrown out, and Yahoo may face the same problems. If the case is successful, the plaintiffs are asking a judge to stop Yahoo from continuing to scan emails and pay damages under both US and California law. That, however, is a long ways away.
The case hasn't even been certified as a class action suit yet, and Google hasn't lost its case either, so the precedent is far from clear.
The plaintiffs claim that Yahoo scanned incoming emails to serve more targeted ads, and that Yahoo was effective in intercepting and reading their mails. As non-users, they argue that they didn't agree to the searches, and they're filing suit on behalf of all other Americans who sent mail to Yahoo.
The case isn't exactly like the class-action suit against Google — which included Gmail account holders as well as non-users — but it uses the same basic argument, and Yahoo will likely mount a pretty similar defense.
Google argued that if you were sending emails to one of its users, you implicitly understood that Google was going to scan them and that you were voluntarily giving up information to a third party, which removes the legal right to absolute privacy. It also said that scanning emails was a standard part of its business model, which could theoretically let it off the hook.
In 2003, a web service known as Scroogled! was launched to allow users to perform Google searches anonymously. It focused heavily on searcher privacy by blocking Google cookies and not saving log files. The service was developed by Google critic Daniel Brandt, who was concerned about Google collecting personal information on its users.
Judge Lucy Koh, however, said that Google's arguments weren't strong enough to get the suit automatically thrown out, and Yahoo may face the same problems. If the case is successful, the plaintiffs are asking a judge to stop Yahoo from continuing to scan emails and pay damages under both US and California law. That, however, is a long ways away.
The case hasn't even been certified as a class action suit yet, and Google hasn't lost its case either, so the precedent is far from clear.
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