The Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) has fined Google €403 million for mishandling European users’ geolocation data between 2018 and 2020. Dublin’s regulator—holding EU jurisdiction as Google Ireland Ltd.’s headquarters—found a lack of transparency, lawful basis, and fairness across position-tracking features like ‘Web & App Activity’ and ‘Location History.’ Users were effectively monitored without clear awareness that their data was leveraged for targeted advertising.
Beyond the fine, Mountain View must bring its privacy practices into compliance within six months. The ruling stems from complaints filed back in 2018 by multiple European consumer groups, coordinated by BEUC, accusing the tech giant of using deceptive UI patterns to push users to keep location tracking turned on. Italy’s Privacy Authority played a decisive role in the outcome; its formal objections raised via the EU cooperation network (IMI) were fully adopted, toughening both the violation classifications and the required remedies. Google countered that the case targets outdated policies, pointing to safeguards introduced since 2019—such as auto-delete options and storing Google Maps history locally on devices rather than on company servers.
The company retains the right to appeal to the Irish High Court within 28 days of formal notification, ahead of the DPC releasing the full text of the decision. This penalty aligns with a broader global crackdown on the firm. Google has already settled major multi-million-dollar disputes over location tracking and personal privacy in the US, while facing ongoing antitrust fines and strict compliance mandates from the European Commission under digital market regulations.
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