Google LLC
Issued by Commission Nationale de l'Informatique et des Libertés (CNIL) on 2019-01-21
What happened
France's CNIL fined Google €50 million for lack of transparency and inadequate consent mechanisms for ad personalization. Users were not clearly informed about how their data was used for personalized advertising, and consent was not freely given — it was buried in multiple layers of settings with pre-checked boxes.
Articles violated
Lessons learned
Consent for personalized advertising must be specific, informed, and freely given. Pre-ticked consent boxes are not valid under GDPR. Information about data processing must be easily accessible in one place, not scattered across multiple pages. The size of the fine reflects the severity of systemic transparency failures.
Source
View original decisionDisclaimer: This summary is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Refer to the original decision for complete details.
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