Oracle Settles Consumer Privacy Case for $115M

Oracle paid $115 million to settle a lawsuit accusing it of gathering and selling personal data

A preliminary settlement of the proposed class action was filed in San Francisco federal court on Thursday night, necessitating a judge’s approval. Oracle denied any misconduct.

The plaintiffs, who have no prior association with Oracle, claimed that the company violated federal and state privacy laws and California’s constitution by generating unauthorized “digital dossiers” for hundreds of millions of individuals.

They stated that the dossiers contained information regarding the locations of individuals’ online browsing, banking, dining, shopping, and credit card usage.

According to Oracle, the information was subsequently sold directly to marketers or through products like ID Graph, which help marketers “orchestrate a relevant, personalized experience for each individual.”

The settlement pertains to individuals whose personal information Oracle has collected or sold since August 19, 2018.

The Austin, Texas-based company consented to refrain from collecting user-generated information from URLs of previously visited websites or text that users input in online forms (excluding Oracle’s websites) as part of the settlement.

Oracle did not prompt what should have been requests for comment on Friday.

Michael Katz-Lacabe, a privacy rights activist, and Jennifer Golbeck, a University of Maryland professor specializing in social media and privacy, are named plaintiffs.

The plaintiffs’ attorney, Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, can request a maximum of $28.75 million from the settlement to cover legal fees.

The case is Katz-Lacabe et al v. Oracle America Inc., U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No. 22-04792.