Privacy Violation Lawsuit Dismissed Against Google, Viacom

A nationwide lawsuit accusing Google and Viacom of illegally tracking children under the age of 13 who visited the Nickelodeon website to watch videos and play videogames was dismissed Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Stanley Chesler in Newark, New Jersey. “Children do indeed warrant special attention and heightened protections under our laws,” said Chesler. But he said that there's no evidence that the children's privacy was violated by either company as established under the U.S. Video Privacy Protection Act, nor is there evidence that either company engaged in “highly offensive” behavior when it came to tracking the children for advertising purposes.