By Jonathan Stempel
(Reuters) – A federal decide dismissed a proposed class motion lawsuit accusing Google of illegally benefiting from Google Play present card scams by refusing to refund hundreds of thousands of {dollars} stolen from victims.
In a late Monday (NASDAQ:) determination, U.S. District Decide Beth Labson Freeman mentioned the plaintiff Judy Could misplaced cash as a result of scammers induced her to purchase present playing cards, and failed to point out that Google precipitated her losses or knew it was receiving stolen funds.
The San Jose, California-based decide additionally mentioned Google was not chargeable for preserving 15% to 30% commissions on purchases that scammers made with the present playing cards, as a result of Google’s conduct was unrelated to the unique fraud.
Could mentioned she misplaced $1,000 in April 2021 when a scammer posing as a relative instructed her to contact a supposed authorities agent, who instructed her she was eligible for federal grant cash if she purchased Google Play present playing cards.
The Brownsville, Indiana resident mentioned she supplied the codes on the again to cowl supposed upfront prices, however the scammers used the codes to make purchases.
Could mentioned she wouldn’t have purchased the playing cards had Google warned on the packaging about scams, and that anybody demanding cost with the playing cards was a scammer.
Legal professionals for Could didn’t instantly reply on Tuesday to requests for remark. Google, a unit of Alphabet (NASDAQ:), didn’t instantly reply to comparable requests.
Freeman mentioned Could may attempt to refile her lawsuit, however dismissed a declare looking for triple damages for good. Alphabet is predicated in Mountain View, California.
In 2023, Individuals misplaced $217 million in present card or reload card fraud, in line with the Federal Commerce Fee.
The precise quantity is probably going a lot greater as a result of the information cowl solely reported instances. Citing FTC knowledge from 2021, Could mentioned Google Play playing cards account for about 20% of present card scams.
The case is Could v Google LLC et al, U.S. District Courtroom, Northern District of California, No. 24-01314.
