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In her lawsuit, former Google employee and privacy activist Annan Tegeler claims she was singed off her Google account in retaliation for reporting a security flaw. Google denied the allegation, but the lawsuit continues. Tegeler wrote in her lawsuit that she was fired for reporting a security flaw, and Google denied her claim that it was her report that provoked her termination. But now, Google has responded to michael tegeler lawsuit with a six-page counter affidavit filed in federal court. The document offers the whole story from Google’s perspective, including why it settled the case rather than filing a countersuit. Here’s what you need to know.
How to read michael tegeler lawsuit
The michael tegeler lawsuit alleged that in 2017, she was aware of a security risk with Google Photos and that she reported the risk to company management. Google wrote that it already had a plan in place to take steps to protect employees, but that Google Photos was a separate issue.
The lawsuit also alleged that in 2014, Google prevented her from posting key details about a project the company was working on. That incident led to her termination, and the lawsuit said Google also had a hand in her removal.
Google’s counter affidavit
The counter affidavit filed by Google tells a different story, saying that it had no knowledge of the incident in which Tegeler was singed off her account and that it was not informed about her termination. Google also said it was not aware of the incident in which it removed the offending photos from Tegeler’s account.
Google said that the company began working on a fix for the security risk in 2014, and it said it was working with other companies on how to address the problem. But that year, Google Photos was first released, and the company eventually said that it was aware of the security risk.
Google said that it was working with Google North America, which oversees the operations of all countries around the world, on the fix for the security risk, and that Google Photos was an issue for Google in general. The company also said that it had set up a “kill switch” so that if someone used Google Photos to take a picture of itself, it would shut down the entire app.
Why Google Settled the case
We’ve written before about Google’s counter-affidavit, which claims that the company didn’t know about the security risk with Google Photos until 2014, and that it was an internal problem. But why did Google settle the case?
Tegeler’s lawsuit alleged that in April 2014, she received a referral from a colleague who was working on a project at Google. That person said that someone working on a project that was related to Google Photos was looking for ways to hack into Google accounts and get access to sensitive information. Google says that the person who referred her was not the person who wrote the original complaint, and that the two were just working together. Google also said it provided a response to the person who referred her and that it had already fixed the problem.
Google’s counter-affidavit states that the employee who referred her said she was in the process of working on a project related to Google Photos, and that she was looking for ways to get access to sensitive information. But that employee also said that Google could have done something about the security risk if it had been aware of it. Google also said that it had no idea at the time that the employee was working on a sensitive project.
Where to find the original complaint
We’ve written previously about the original complaint, which is focused on Google’s handling of a security incident in 2014. The complaint details the events leading up to Google’s decision to remove the offending photos, but also details Google’s response to the incident. It also quotes the employee who referred Tegeler as saying that Google was protecting her reputation by providing her with a fix for the security risk.
The complaint also says that Google was trying to help an old employee who was in the process of leaving the company, and that its counter-affidavit includes letters and emails sent to the employee after the employee left the company.
The bottom line
It’s important to remember that while Google has denied the allegations in this lawsuit, it has also agreed to several other things on the record. Among these, the company said that it had no knowledge of the incident in which Tegeler was singed off her account and that it was not informed about her termination. It also said that it had no idea that the employee was working on a sensitive project. These statements don’t support Google’s suggestion that its counter-affidavit was false, but they do support its counter-affidavit being true.
If you’re wondering about these developments in Google’s response to your claims, you might want to read on.
For more information about Google’s position in this case, you can read the company’s reply to the original complaint, which you can access here.
You might also want to take a look at our guide on how to proceed if you’ve been wronged by a tech company. After all, Google has been in the tech industry long enough to know how to get around a lot of public sentiments.
If you think you’ve been wronged by a tech company, you can file a lawsuit in federal court. That could end up being a very long way away, but it might still end up being a long way. And there’s no guarantee that the outcome will be anything other than negative as well. In fact, we doubt that Google will get support from the courts for its counter-affidavit. Before you file your claim, though, you should understand the legal behind-the-scenes actions Google has taken against you.
If the lawsuit proves successful, Google could face a lawsuit from all of its former employees, as well as from former employees who were in the wrong place at the wrong time. To date, Google has released just a few pages from its counter-affidavit, but it’s clear that it has taken a very different approach to the rest of the story than the defendants have.
Further reading
Keep in mind that while this case is focused on Google, there are many other companies that may be facing similar problems. So, while you’re reading this, check out the following:
Why was Google created?
Why did Google get chosen to design the Web and the Android software?
Is Google violating your privacy?
Is Google trying to game the system?
How can I find the truth?
Annan Tegeler
Annan Tegeler is the former Google employee who is suing the firm for defamation. She is the founder and managing editor of New York magazine and has been taking legal action against the tech giant since 2014.
Tegeler was one of the first to voice concerns about the security of Google Photos on Twitter, where she also shared a picture of herself with the message, “If this is how you defend your privacy, then you are all crazy.” That tweet triggered an avalanche of new accounts and messages, many of which were critical of Google.
Google said that it had no knowledge of the incident in which Tegeler was singed off her account and that it was not informed about her termination. However, the company also said that it had a kill switch in place if someone used Google Photos to take a picture of itself, and that it shut down the whole app if it was being used for commercial purpose.
Google also said that it would not comment on any of the other details in the counter-affidavit, as those details are still being determined by the court.
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