Google will pay $391.5m (£330m) to settle claims over how it collects user data.
The tech giant tracked users’ location who opted out of location services on their devices, 40 US states said.
Google has been asked to be transparent about location tracking in the future and to develop a web page informing users of the data it collects.
It is the largest multi-state privacy-related settlement in US history.
A Google official said, “In line with the improvements we’ve made over the past few years, we’ve resolved this investigation based on outdated product policies that we changed years ago.”
Last month, Google agreed to pay Arizona $85 million over similar issues with how it collects location data.
There remains an outstanding case in US courts after Texas, Indiana, Washington, and the District of Columbia filed suit against Google in January.
“Misleading Consumers”
Knowing a user’s location helps advertisers target products.
And location services help Google generate $200 billion in annual ad revenue.
Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum, who led the case – alongside Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson – said: “For years, Google has prioritized profit over life. private to its users.
“It was tricky and deceptive.
“Consumers thought they had turned off their location-based features on Google – but the company continued to record their movements and use that information for advertisers secretly.”
Attorneys general said Google had misled consumers about location tracking since at least 2014, breaking national consumer protection laws.
The company has been urged to significantly improve user controls and how it discloses location tracking, starting in 2023.