AI Summary of the case
NCLA Sues Mass Over Covid App
The New Civil Liberties Alliance (NCLA) filed a class-action lawsuit, Wright v. Goldstein, challenging the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) for auto-installing its “MassNotify” Covid-19 tracking app on over one million Android smartphones without users’ knowledge or consent between March 18, 2021, and May 11, 2023. The app, coordinated with Google, ran covertly, did not appear on home screens, and could be reinstalled even after deletion, tracking users’ movements and personal contacts.
NCLA argued the program violated the Fourth and Fifth Amendments by constituting an unlawful seizure of private data and an uncompensated taking of property, as the app consumed phone storage without permission. The lawsuit also cited violations of Articles X and XIV of the Massachusetts Declaration of Rights, asserting no law authorized such surveillance.
- The case was filed in November 2022 by plaintiffs Robert Wright and Johnny Kula, with NCLA representing a class of affected Android users.
- In April 2026, NCLA secured a settlement in which DPH agreed to delete all collected data and refrain from similar installations without consent for five years.
- The settlement established a legal precedent reinforcing constitutional limits on government use of smartphone surveillance technology.
