I actually also filed a complaint with the FTC about this program. Nobody wrote an article about me though. :( (In fairness, this appears to be an actual legal case, not just a 'complaint'.) I was particularly perturbed that Google made it clear they had access to my credit and debit card data even if I do not grant them permission to have it.
My guess is somehow I have given the credit card companies permission to sell it, but it feels like my entire purchase history attached to my personally-identifiable info enough to tie it to a Google account really shouldn't be legal to sell.
As a note, filing privacy complaints with the Federal Trade Commission is surprisingly intuitive, and I highly recommend people familiarize themselves with the system and use it liberally.