Perplexity, which has been sued over copyrights, is now facing a class action suit regarding privacy. So are Meta and Google.
The suit, filed on behalf of a Utah individual
identified only as John Doe, alleges that Perplexity shared data on this person with Meta and Google for advertising purposes, and did so even when he was in Perplexity’s Incognito mode, Seeking Alpha reports.
Specifically, this information consisted of the conversations John Doe had with Perplexity’s AI Machine search engine, the suit charges.
This doesn’t
concern publishers per se, but it reflects a growing concern about digital privacy. And it could come around and bite publishers if they share information for targeting purposes.
According to Seeking Alpha, the suit says that the “companies that deal in this data—such as Defendants Meta and Google—are some of the largest companies in the world. When these
companies gain access to individuals' intimate, personal data (such as the data that Plaintiff shared here), they are able to exploit this sensitive data for their own benefit, including targeting
individuals with advertising and reselling their sensitive data to additional third parties."
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The suit continues, "No reasonable person would have expected that Perplexity would share complete
transcripts of their conversations with Perplexity's AI Machine with companies like Meta and Google. But that is what Perplexity did … In return for sharing all this sensitive data with Meta
and Google, Perplexity received advertising and analytics benefits that it used for its own benefit."
The suit has not yet attained class action status. But it probably will, even if it
doesn't deserve to. Fears about privacy, which were once focused on mailing lists, now concern the little traces we all leave online. This reporter gets ads on Facebook related to recent transactions
that were not conducted through Facebook. Where do they get that information?
Reputable firms offer a choice when people visit their site: they can accept or reject cookies. But many do
not offer the reject option.
One wonders about this case. Even if the allegations are true, did the person suffer real harm?
Still, it could result in a fascinating
discovery process.
The case is on file with the U.S. District Court for Northern District Court of California.