Credit: Marco Piunti / Getty Images A class action lawsuit filed last week in the Northern District of California accused Oracle of running a “worldwide surveillance machine” and violating the fundamental privacy rights of hundreds of millions of people. The suit alleges that Oracle has violated California’s state constitution by compiling and selling off personal data and makes a common law tort claim for intrusion upon seclusion, along with five further causes of action ranging from state data protection laws to the federal wiretap act.Lawsuit claims Oracle created profiles without consentThe plaintiffs in the suit are two privacy rights activists in the U.S. and one in Ireland, all of whom assert that they have data to show that Oracle has created profiles of them without their consent. The amount of relief sought isn’t specified, but the suit – in addition to asking for certification as a class action – demands a halt to Oracle’s data collection activities, as well as restitution of profits made from data collected without consent.“As a data broker, Oracle effectuates ongoing, comprehensive surveillance of the Plaintiffs and Class members which grievously intrudes upon their privacy,” the complaint states. “Ordinary people, such as the Class members, do not and cannot possess an appropriate level of knowledge about the substantial threats that Oracle’s surveillance poses to their own autonomy.”Latest in a series of actions against Oracle’s data collection practicesIt’s not the first time that Oracle has dealt with legal trouble over its data collection practices, having faced a GDPR-based class action in Holland in 2020. (That case was dismissed earlier this year for a lack of standing, although the plaintiff, an activist group called The Privacy Collective, has said it plans to appeal.) UK courts also shot down a similar lawsuit against Google last year, saying that plaintiffs alleging that Google partially overrode iPhone privacy settings in the Safari browser couldn’t demonstrate that they’d suffered damage or a loss as a result. Whether the results will be different in U.S. federal court remains to be seen, but privacy experts will doubtless be watching the case closely. EU countries like Holland are subject to the wide-ranging GDPR, while the UK also has the Data Protection Act. By contrast, the U.S. is still without a national-level data protection rule, so legal action in this area has to take place in different contexts. Related content news EchoMark releases watermarking solution to secure private communications, detect insider threats Enterprise-grade software embeds AI-driven, forensic watermarking in emails and documents to pinpoint potential insider risks By Michael Hill Sep 28, 2023 4 mins Communications Security Communications Security Communications Security news SpecterOps to use in-house approximation to test for global attack variations The new offering uses atomic tests and in-house approximation in purple team assessment to test all known techniques of an attack. By Shweta Sharma Sep 28, 2023 3 mins Penetration Testing news New Trojan ZenRAT masquerades as Bitwarden password manager A report by Proofpoint identifies the new Trojan as undocumented and possessing information-stealing capabilities. By Lucian Constantin Sep 28, 2023 4 mins Cyberattacks Hacking Data and Information Security news UK Cyber Security Council CEO reflects on a year of progress Professor Simon Hepburn sits down with broadcaster ITN to discuss Council’s work around cybersecurity professional standards, careers and learning, and outreach and diversity. By Michael Hill Sep 27, 2023 3 mins Government Data and Information Security Security Practices Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe