Google Attacked by EU Consumer Groups Over Location Tracking
- Complaints to be filed with seven European privacy watchdogs
- EU’s GDPR rules allow privacy regulators to levy heavy fines
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Google runs the risk of hefty fines from the European Union’s beefed-up data-protection watchdogs after consumer groups accused the search-engine giant of abusing tools that track users’ location.
Seven European consumer organizations on Tuesday said they would file complaints with their national regulators, who now have powers to levy penalties of as much as 4 percent of a company’s annual sales for the most serious violations. The groups accuse Google of collecting data that can reveal a lot more about its users than just their location, such as their political leanings or sexual orientation.