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Technology giant Google now wants a case filed at a Nairobi court accusing it of alleged privacy violations by illegally tracking Android users and collecting personal information dismissed.

In an application filed under a certificate of urgency before Milimani High Court, the internet search company seeks to have the lawsuit against it dropped stating that the same is incompetent, bad in law and unsustainable as the petitioners sued the wrong entity.

Through lawyer Esther Opiyo, Google urged Judge Thande Mugure yesterday to strike out their name in the class-action lawsuit filed by African Centre for Corrective and Preventive Action (ACCPA) organisation together with 31 users of Google and its mobile applications on Android platform. “Your honour we have filed an application in which we are seeking to be struck out from the entire petition. The petitioners have sued the wrong entity in this matter,” Opiyo told the court.

But the petitioners through lawyer Karugu Mbugua sought fourteen days to file their responses to the two applications by the AG, CS ICT and Google to dismiss the suit

Justice Thande however granted the petitioners’ request and ordered them to respond to the applications by May 29, 2023.  She further directed all parties to file their submissions by June 26 ahead of the hearing on the applications on July 3, 2023.

Data protection laws

In the case, the petitioners accuse the big tech firm of breaching Kenya’s data protection laws by illegally invading the privacy of users and collecting the users’ biometric information like photos to train their facial recognition technology, voices, videos and messages.

They want orders preventing continued infringement and violation to the right to privacy of android users.

The petitioners have sued Google Kenya Ltd alongside the Attorney-General, Cabinet Secretary Ministry of ICT, the Data Commissioner and Communication Authority of Kenya.

According to the petitioners, Google, through the Global Positioning System (GPS), “is aptly able to track the movement of Android users without their explicit consent”.

The lobby group together with the 31 petitioners also seeks a declaration from the court that Google’s actions contravene provisions of Article 31 of the country’s Constitution.