Meta wins location privacy lawsuit dismissal
Meta wins location privacy lawsuit dismissal
https://marketingedge.com.ng/meta-wins-location-privacy-lawsuit-dismissal/
Publish Date: 2026-05-25 07:25:00
Source Domain: marketingedge.com.ng
Meta wins location privacy lawsuit dismissal
U.S. District Court Judge, Rita Lin dismissed with prejudice a class-action privacy lawsuit on 22 May, 2026, alleging Meta Platforms wrongly collected location data about Facebook users through tracking software embedded in third-party mobile applications It therefore, ruled that plaintiffs failed establishing Meta knew it lacked users’ permission to collect such information.
The dismissal, issued from Norther District of California federal court in San Francisco, permanently closed litigation brough February 2025 by California resident Lisa Tsering and later joined by Dominique Davis. The plaintiffs alleged Meta receives precise geolocation data from applications using Facebook Audience Network software development kit without users’ consent, violating California privacy laws.
Judge Lin’s ruling established that “the mere receipt of allegedly sensitive user information does not plausibly suggests that the recipient would (or should) know that such information was received without consent.” The decision emphasised that even if plaintiffs’ allegations proved true during trial, the claims wouldn’t establish Meta possessed knowledge, noting that, rather, it lacked proper authorisation for data collection.
The dismissal with prejudice means plaintiffs cannot amend their complaint and refile the case, representing complete legal victory for Meta on these specific allegations.
The ruling marks second dismissal of substantially similar claims, Lin previously dismissed an earlier version of the lawsuit in January 2026, allowing plaintiffs opportunities to amend their allegations. The May dismissal closed that path permanently.
Meanwhile, the Facebook Audience Network software development kit enables third-party app developers to integrate Meta’s advertising and analytics tools within their applications. Plaintiffs alleged the SDK automatically transmits…
