Google will pay Texas $1.4B to settle claims over user data collection
Google will pay $1.4 billion to Texas to settle claims the company collected users’ data without permission, the state’s attorney general announced Friday.
Attorney General Ken Paxton described the settlement as sending a message to tech companies that he will not allow them to make money off of “selling away our rights and freedoms.”
“In Texas, Big Tech is not above the law.” Paxton said in a statement. “For years, Google secretly tracked people’s movements, private searches, and even their voiceprints and facial geometry through their products and services. I fought back and won.”
The agreement settles several claims Texas made against the search giant in 2022 related to geolocation, incognito searches and biometric data. The state argued Google was “unlawfully tracking and collecting users’ private data.”
Paxton claimed, for example, that Google collected millions of biometric identifiers, including voiceprints and records of face geometry, through such products and services as Google Photos and Google Assistant.
Google spokesperson José Castañeda said the agreement settles an array of “old claims,” some of which relate to product policies the company has already changed.
“We are pleased to put them behind us, and we will continue to build robust privacy controls into our services,” he said in a statement.
The company also clarified that the settlement does not require any new product changes.
Paxton said the $1.4 billion is the largest amount won by any state in a settlement with Google over this type of data-privacy violations.
Texas previously reached two other key settlements with Google within the last two years, including one in December 2023 in which the company agreed to pay $700 million and make several other concessions to settle allegations that it had been stifling competition against its Android app store.
Meta has also agreed to a $1.4 billion settlement with Texas in a privacy lawsuit over allegations that the tech giant used users’ biometric data without their permission.
Meet five new species discovered in 2025
A bumpy snailfish, Andean mouse opossum and ancient sea cow were just some of the many species described in 2025.
What to know about Nick Shirley, the YouTuber alleging daycare fraud in Minnesota
Shirley is a 23-year-old self-described "independent YouTube journalist" who made prank videos in high school before pivoting to politics. He participated in a White House roundtable in October.
Greetings from Vienna, where an imperial palace hosts a holiday market for all
Far-Flung Postcards is a weekly series in which NPR's international team shares moments from their lives and work around the world.
His brother’s mental illness isolated his family. Now he’s helping other caregivers
When it comes to serious mental illness, family caregivers are crucial partners. But often, they must fend for themselves. A new solution offers them support.
Out with the mayo: How Ukrainians reclaim holiday food
For many people from former Soviet countries, New Year's is a big holiday feast time. A Ukrainian restaurant in Washington gives NPR a taste of what's on the menu.
Farmers are about to pay a lot more for health insurance
Tariffs, inflation, and other federal policies have battered U.S. farmers' bottom lines. Now many farmers say the expiration of federal health care subsidies will make their coverage unaffordable.
