A class action lawsuit has accused CNN of allegedly attaching trackers onto the devices of people visiting their website, allegedly in violation of a California privacy law.
The lawsuit could potentially involve hundreds of thousands, or even millions of people, according to the complaint.
The lawsuit was initially filed in Alameda County Superior Court on Jan. 25 by named plaintiff Carol Lesh, of Berkeley. It was removed to federal court in San Francisco on March 5.
The suit alleges that CNN installs three trackers - PubMatic Tracker, Rubicon Tracker, and Aniview Tracker - on the internet browsers of visitors to its site. These trackers reportedly collect users' IP addresses without their prior consent or a court order, an alleged violation of the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA).
Carol Lesh is seeking to prevent CNN from further alleged violations of Californian residents' privacy rights and to recover statutory damages of $5,000 per alleged violation of CIPA, a figure that could quickly climb into the many millions, if not billions of dollars, when multiplied across millions of potential class members who may have visited CNN's site.
The plaintiffs are represented by attorneys L. Timothy Fisher and Emily A. Horne, of the firm of Bursor & Fisher, of Walnut Creek.