France data privacy watchdog Commission nationale de l’informatique et des libertés (CNIL) said that they have fined Google for 150 million euros and Meta (Facebook) for 60 million euros for making it difficult for internet users to refuse online trackers known as cookies.
The action is been taken as they violated the French data privacy rules. Both the tech giants will be fined 100,000 euros per day if they do not resolve the issue within three months.
A Meta spokesperson said that they are reviewing the authority’s decision and remain committed to working with relevant authorities. He also added that their cookie consent controls provide people great control over their data, including new setting on Facebook and Instagram people can revisit and manage their decision at any given time. They plan to continue and develop and improve these controls.
While a spokesperson from Google said that people trust them with privacy, and they understand the responsibility to keep the trust. Google is committing to further change and actively work with CNIL’s data rules and regulations.
France wants the tech giants to provide simpler tools for refusing cookies. They said that the companies provide a vital button to users for accepting cookies, why an equivalent wasn’t provided to refuse the same.
This isn’t the first time the country’s privacy regulator has issued fine for tech companies. In December 2020, CNIL fined Amazon for 35 million euros and Google for 100 million euros for flouting cookie violations under the e-privacy rule. WhatsApp was charged 225 million euros in September for not being transparent last year, and how it shared data with its parent company.
Facebook too is facing millions of fines for violating GDPR privacy rules about deceptive data collection policies. It is also said that users should easily reconsider any initial agreement concerning cookies via a web link or icon.
