Google Handed $463 Million Fine for EU Location Data Rule Breach

Google has been slapped with a hefty fine of $463 million for violating EU location data rules. The European Union's strict privacy watchdog, Ireland's Data Protection Commission, found that Google mishandled users' location data through its Web & App Activity and Location History settings.

The investigation, which began six years ago, examined how Google applied the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) from 2018 until February 2020. Regulators discovered that Google did not process location data fairly or transparently in its Android mobile operating system's Location Accuracy feature.

This is not the first time Google has faced a massive fine from the EU. The company has been fined over $1.2 billion by Ireland's Data Protection Commission for other privacy breaches, including one involving Meta.