English privacy activists win the right to sue Google over Safari tracking

Google lost a bid to block a privacy lawsuit in the U.K. over alleged unauthorized placement of cookies on devices running Apple’s Safari browser when the U.K. High Court ruled on Thursday that the case falls within the scope of the country’s jurisdiction. A group of U.K. Internet privacy activists have sued Google for allegedly circumventing the security settings in Safari in order to plant a cookie used to covertly track online usage and deliver targeted ads, according to information in the court’s ruling.

Privacy activists have won the right to sue Google in England over fooling Safari into accepting cookies, according to reports. Some time ago, Apple updated Safari to allow people to block cookie-based tracking. Google developed a workaround, but was discovered, and punished with multiple fines by the US government. An American class action lawsuit was tossed out of court in October because the judge ruled no one could prove they’d been harmed.