{"id":631347,"date":"2026-09-21T11:30:14","date_gmt":"2026-09-21T11:30:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/631347\/"},"modified":"2026-09-21T11:30:14","modified_gmt":"2026-09-21T11:30:14","slug":"irish-data-protection-watchdog-fines-google-e403m-over-gdpr-breaches-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/631347\/","title":{"rendered":"Irish data protection watchdog fines Google \u20ac403m over GDPR breaches \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ireland\u2019s Data Protection Commission (DPC) has fined Google <\/a>\u20ac403 million for breaches of European information privacy laws related to the tech giant\u2019s processing of its users\u2019 location history and data. <\/p>\n

As a result of these infringements, Google users may have been \u201cunaware that their location was being used to, for example, influence them with ads or to infer their interests, and could lose control over their personal data\u201d, said DPC deputy commissioner Graham Doyle in a statement.<\/p>\n

It is understood that Google may appeal elements of the decision. <\/p>\n

Under the EU\u2019s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the processing of such data must be lawful, fair and transparent. <\/p>\n

The DPC said its investigation, which began in 2020, found that Google infringed the GDPR by processing users\u2019 location data unlawfully and unfairly through three of its features.<\/p>\n

\u201cLocation data is a type of personal data which is processed by way of location tracking, and includes data collected or processed by Google, which, by itself or in conjunction with other information, an individual\u2019s location can be inferred,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Google has been given six months to address the issues. However, the tech giant said the case centres around \u201chistorical policies\u201d that have since been updated. <\/p>\n

\u201cFrom 2019 onwards, we\u2019ve significantly evolved our practices and launched robust tools that make managing location data simple,\u201d a Google spokesperson said. <\/p>\n

The company now allows users to delete their data automatically once a certain period has expired, between three and 36 months. Google also stores location data that populates the Timelines feature on Google Maps on users\u2019 devices, and simplified the management of how personal data is used for ad personalisation. <\/p>\n

The \u20ac403 million fine is the fourth largest that the DPC has handed down since the GDPR came into force. The largest remains Meta\u2019s \u20ac1.2 billion fine imposed in 2023. <\/p>\n

The decision was welcomed by the European Consumer Organisation, BEUC, which submitted one of the complaints to the DPC. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe decision is good news for consumers, as it holds Google accountable and confirms the illegality of the way the tech giant obtained consent to use peoples\u2019 location data,\u201d said Agust\u00edn Reyna, director general of BEUC. \u201cHowever, the time needed to come to this conclusion is disproportionate with the seriousness of the infringement. Late enforcement can be as harmful as no enforcement at all. Consumers\u2019 fundamental rights need to be upheld faster and better.\u201d<\/p>\n

Location data is considered particularly sensitive because it can be used to reveal details about users\u2019 personal lives, from religious beliefs and health conditions to political opinions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Ireland\u2019s Data Protection Commission (DPC) has fined Google \u20ac403 million for breaches of European information privacy laws related…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":631348,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[23088,27168,1711,42,43,40,38,41,39],"class_list":["post-631347","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-data-protection-commission","tag-gdpr-general-data-protection-regulation","tag-google","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/631347","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=631347"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/631347\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/631348"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=631347"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=631347"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=631347"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}