Oracle coughs up $115M to make privacy case go away

Oracle has agreed to cough up $115 million to settle a two-year class action lawsuit that alleged misuse of user data.

The legal agreement "delivers substantial relief" to the plaintiff consumers in the class, according to a legal filing [PDF].

"The proposed Settlement delivers substantial relief to the Settlement Class, providing that Oracle will pay $115 million into a non-reversionary cash fund to be distributed evenly among Settlement Class Members," it says.

The settlement ensures Big Red commits to address the alleged privacy violations through binding promises that it will "not capture certain complained-of electronic communications and will implement an audit program to review its customers' compliance with contractual consumer privacy obligations."

The complainants in the settlement number 220 million people. Oracle signalled last month that it is closing its ad tech business.

"The Settlement thus demarcates a new era for Oracle's relationship with class members, offers substantial benefits, and at the same time eliminates the risk and uncertainty of continued litigation," the filing adds.

On an earnings call in June, CEO Safra Catz said the company had "decided to exit the advertising business, which had declined to about $300 million in revenue in fiscal year 2024." The business reported around $2 billion in 2022.

The plaintiff group began an investigation into Oracle's data privacy practices in 2020. It involved analyzing the vast public record, including complaints filed by consumer organizations and government regulators, academic articles, news reports, books, web pages, marketing materials, privacy policies, and disclosures, according to the legal filing.

The plaintiffs also obtained Offline Access Request Response Reports (OARRRs) from Oracle, which have been central to this litigation. After consulting a privacy law scholar and two computer science experts who performed forensic research and analysis of Oracle's publicly available technical documentation, the plaintiffs filed suit against Oracle in August 2022, alleging that its data brokering business violates internet users' right to privacy under the California Constitution as well as various state and federal privacy statutes.

In April, Judge Richard Seeborg cut a claim from the case brought under Florida common law and a claim under the Federal Wiretap Act. The order allowed the parties to reach the current settlement.

The Register has asked Oracle to comment. ®