Online marketplace Etsy Inc. is facing a proposed class action lawsuit in California federal court, accused of unlawfully sharing website visitors’ personal data with tech giants including Google and Meta through hidden tracking technologies.
Filed on July 3, the 49-page complaint by plaintiff Austin White alleges that Etsy violates California privacy laws by embedding third-party tracking tools — including Google Ads/DoubleClick, Facebook Pixel, TikTok Tracker, and Microsoft Ads — on its platform without users’ knowledge or consent. These tools allegedly collect sensitive data like IP addresses, referral URLs, device information, and browsing behavior to facilitate digital profiling, targeted advertising, and real-time ad auctions.
White claims that Etsy’s actions violate the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA), particularly Section 638.51, which prohibits the use of “pen registers” and “trap and trace devices.” According to the complaint, the third-party trackers function as such by silently harvesting user data for commercial use, enabling identity resolution and behavioral profiling across platforms.
“These trackers generate detailed behavioral profiles and monetize user interactions without consent,” said White. “Etsy benefits financially by auctioning access to users in real-time ad bidding systems run by third-party ad networks.”
The lawsuit seeks class certification for all California-based Etsy users affected by the tracking. White is also asking the court to enjoin Etsy from continuing the alleged practices and to award statutory damages and legal costs.
White is represented by Reuben D. Nathan of Nathan & Associates APC and Ross Cornell of Law Offices of Ross Cornell APC.
The case is Austin White v. Etsy Inc., Case No. 4:25-cv-05644, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
