Has DuckDuckGo faced lawsuits over data practices?
Executive summary
DuckDuckGo has not been the target of major consumer privacy lawsuits in the sources provided, but it has faced public controversy and scrutiny over its data practices—most notably a 2022 revelation that its mobile browser allowed some Microsoft tracking on certain sites, reported by WIRED and other outlets [1] [2]. DuckDuckGo has also appeared as a witness and witness-like participant in larger antitrust litigation against Google, where its CEO and founder have testified about competition, not about DuckDuckGo being sued for its own data practices [3].
1. Controversy, not class-action litigation: what reporting shows
Available reporting focuses on public exposure and criticism rather than lawsuits targeting DuckDuckGo itself. Investigative and tech outlets documented that a security researcher found DuckDuckGo’s mobile browser allowed Microsoft-owned tracking scripts to communicate with Microsoft domains in 2022; WIRED explained the discovery and the ensuing reputational blow to DuckDuckGo’s privacy claims [1]. The Markup and other summaries likewise describe the incident as a controversy over a Microsoft tracking agreement, not as the basis of a filed privacy suit [2].
2. The Microsoft tracking episode: factual anatomy
In May–June 2022 a researcher named Zach Edwards analyzed browser data flows and concluded that DuckDuckGo’s Privacy Browser sent data to Microsoft domains such as Bing and LinkedIn when users visited sites that included Microsoft scripts; WIRED reported these technical findings and DuckDuckGo’s public pushback that its search product remained privacy-preserving [1]. Independent writeups echoed that the issue centered on the browser’s handling of third-party scripts and partnerships with Microsoft [4] [2].
3. Legal spotlight on Google, DuckDuckGo as witness — not defendant
DuckDuckGo has been prominent in antitrust litigation as a competitor and potential witness, not as a defendant in privacy suits. Fortune covered DuckDuckGo’s founder testifying in the U.S. Department of Justice’s antitrust case against Google, arguing that default deals and phone preinstalls hinder competition; that coverage framed DuckDuckGo as a party affected by Google’s business practices rather than as a party accused of unlawful data collection [3].
4. Claims in later commentary vs. contemporaneous reporting
Later blog posts and opinion pieces—some dated well after 2022 and framed as critical takes—amplify concerns about DuckDuckGo’s privacy limits and suggest broader “hidden” data practices or vulnerabilities in 2025 [4] [5]. Those sources recycle the 2022 technical finding and extend it with analysis or warnings. The core, contemporaneous investigative reporting cited here (WIRED, The Markup) remains the primary documented incident [1] [2].
5. What the sources do not show
Available sources do not mention any filed class-action or enforcement lawsuits specifically naming DuckDuckGo over its data practices. They do not document regulatory fines or judicial rulings against DuckDuckGo for privacy violations in the cited reporting (not found in current reporting). Claims that DuckDuckGo “sold” user data or was fined are not supported by the materials provided here [1] [2].
6. Competing perspectives and implicit agendas
Press coverage reflects two competing themes. Critics and security researchers emphasize that a privacy brand is vulnerable when product edge cases allow large partners like Microsoft to receive data flows [1] [2]. DuckDuckGo’s own responses, quoted in those pieces, stress that the main DuckDuckGo search product still protects privacy and that the issue was limited to specific browser behaviors or technical nuances [1]. Opinion pieces and later blogs have a clear agenda to challenge the “privacy halo” around DuckDuckGo and may amplify worst-case readings; readers should weigh their critique against the primary investigative accounts [4] [5].
7. Practical takeaway for readers
If your question is strictly legal—“Has DuckDuckGo faced lawsuits over data practices?”—the documentation here does not show such lawsuits; reporting instead documents a high-profile privacy controversy regarding Microsoft tracking activity in DuckDuckGo’s browser and DuckDuckGo’s role as a witness in antitrust matters [1] [3]. If your concern is practical privacy risk, reporters and researchers say DuckDuckGo reduces many common trackers but is not an absolute guarantee of anonymity, and technical limitations or partner integrations can create exceptions [1] [2].
Limitations: this analysis cites only the provided reporting; additional lawsuits or regulatory actions absent from these sources may exist but are not covered here (not found in current reporting).