Google Fined €403 Million Over GDPR Violations Involving Location Data
Summary
Ireland’s DPC fined Google €403 million over GDPR violations in its handling of location data from May 2018 to February 2020 and ordered compliance within six months. The fine is not payable until confirmed by an Irish court.
Key points
- The DPC found unlawful, unfair, and non-transparent processing involving Web & App Activity and Location History, as well as transparency and accountability failures involving Location Accuracy.
- For Web & App Activity and Location History, the DPC also found Google retained location data longer than necessary.
- The DPC ordered Google to bring the relevant processing into compliance within six months, but has not publicly specified which processing the order covers.
- The €403 million fine is not payable until confirmed by an Irish court; Google can appeal within 28 days of receiving formal notice.
- Google said the case concerns historical policies that have since been updated. The DPC has not said whether Google’s changes satisfy its order.
- The inquiry began in February 2020 following complaints from European consumer groups.
Article Details
- Event Type
- GDPR regulatory fine
- Impact
- Ireland’s Data Protection Commission fined Google €403 million over its handling of location data through Web & App Activity, Location History, and Location Accuracy. It found unlawful, unfair, non-transparent processing and, for some findings, retention longer than necessary. Google was ordered to bring the processing into compliance within six months. The fine is not yet payable pending confirmation by an Irish court, and Google may appeal.
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AndroidLocation Accuracy is an Android feature that works out a device’s location more precisely than GPS alone, and it is available to Android users with or without a Google account.Google MapsIn December 2023, Google announced that Timeline, the Google Maps feature that shows Location History on a map, would keep its data on users’ devices.Location AccuracyThe case involved Web & App Activity, Location History, and Location Accuracy.Location HistoryThe case involved Web & App Activity, Location History, and Location Accuracy.TimelineIn December 2023, Google announced that Timeline, the Google Maps feature that shows Location History on a map, would keep its data on users’ devices.Web & App ActivityThe case involved Web & App Activity, Location History, and Location Accuracy.