Venkat Balasubramani writes that a lawsuit against Facebook that was first filed in 2012 has been reinstated. For those who don’t remember the case or can’t recall exactly which of numerous lawsuits this one is, Venkat provides some background for In re Facebook, Inc., Internet Tracking Litigation, No. 17-17486 (9th Cir. April 9, 2020)
Users sued Facebook in 2012 alleging it improperly tracked users’ browsing while they were logged out of Facebook. Facebook apparently included code in its “like” button on third party websites that would inform Facebook when the user visited the website (and the particular URL visited).
Users asserted a variety of claims: (1) violations of state and federal privacy statutes; (2) invasion of privacy claims; (3) breach of contract and breach of the duty of good faith; (4) fraud; (5) trespass to chattels; and (6) larceny.
The district court found the users lacked standing to pursue the trespass, the California Data Access and Fraud Act, fraud, and larceny claims. It found users had standing to pursue the remaining claims but dismissed them on the merits.
Read more on Technology & Marketing Law Blog. Eric also comments on the case and the fact that 8 years after the lawsuit was filed, it is still in early phases of litigation.