Google fined €400 million by Irish regulator over location tracking

Ireland’s Data Protection Commission (DPC) has imposed a fine exceeding €400 million on Google following a six-year investigation into the company’s location tracking practices.

The inquiry, which examined activities between May 2018 and February 2020, found that Google violated European privacy laws by collecting, storing, and using detailed location data for targeted advertising. Regulators determined that the company bypassed user permissions by gathering data through secondary background settings, even when users had explicitly turned off ‘Location History’.

The DPC concluded that these practices allowed the company to infer personal details, such as interests, habits, and movements, through location information. As part of the ruling, Google has been ordered to bring its location data processing into compliance with privacy regulations.