• by Wendy Davis  @wendyndavis, September 7, 2018

Two Ohio residents have dropped a privacy lawsuit accusing Google of allowing outside developers to access Gmail messages, according to court documents filed this week.

The court papers, filed in U.S. District Court in San Jose, California, did not provide a reason for the decision to voluntarily dismiss the case. The dismissal was "without prejudice," meaning that the people who sued can bring the complaint again in the future.

The move brings an end to a lawsuit filed in July, when James Coyne and Michael Coyne alleged in a class-action complaint that Google allowed outside developers, including "marketers and data-mining firms," to access the in-boxes of Gmail users. Their suit came several days after The Wall Street Journal reported that Google allows outside companies, including Return Path and Edison Software, to access Gmail inboxes.

Return Path typically uses computers to scan emails of people who signed up for a free app in the company's partner network, according to the Journal. But two years ago, employees of Return Path read around 8,000 emails in their entirety, the Journal reported.

Google defended its practices in a July blog post, writing that developers are only granted access if they "accurately represent themselves," and "only request relevant data."

The company also said it seeks users' permission before allowing apps to glean in-box data. But the Coynes suggested in their complaint that Google's permissions screen doesn't sufficiently inform users their emails might be read by outside app developers.