Dollar Tree Faces Privacy Suit After Cookie Banner Fails to Halt Tracking Tech
Dollar Tree violated the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA) when it failed to remove third-party tracking technology from its website after consumers chose to reject advertising cookies, said an amended class-action lawsuit Thursday.
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Visitors to the Family Dollar or Dollar Tree website are presented with a cookie banner that “discloses that the Websites use cookies but expressly gives users the option to control how they are tracked and how their personal data is used,” according to thecomplaint in case 5:25-cv-01601, filed in the U.S. District Court for Northern California.
Despite this, the plaintiffs said that the retail company’s “promises [not to track] are outright lies, designed to lull users into a false sense of security,” because it “surreptitiously” allowed several third parties to place tracking cookies on its site “even after users elect to ‘Reject Advertising Cookies.’”
The tracking technology collects data that is then used for the company's "own purposes and financial gain,” including building consumer profiles, which is “exactly what the Website visitors who clicked or selected the ‘Reject Advertising Cookies’ button on the Websites’ cookie consent banners sought to avoid.”
The plaintiffs allege both wiretapping and pen register claims under CIPA, as well as unjust enrichment, intrusion upon seclusion and invasion of privacy.
Dollar Tree could not immediately be reached for comment.