Doubleclick stung in privacy case

$1.8m in legal fees and policy rethink...

Doubleclick has agreed to pay $1.8m in legal fees and rethink its privacy policy as part of a settlement of a class action lawsuit filed against it in the US. The class action case stems from a number of state and federal lawsuits filed against the company in 2001, which claimed its use of customer data infringed privacy standards. The settlement requires Doubleclick to delete customer cookies after five years, and to offer customers a choice on how they want their data used. The company must also provide a clearer privacy policy on its website and educate users on data protection. Doubleclick said it had accounted for the legal charges in Q1 2001 results.