France’s data protection agency issued a 210 million euro ($237 million) fine to Googleand Meta on Thursday over user tracking concerns. Both companies made it harder for people to refuse cookie tracking than to accept it, said the Commission Nationale de l’Informatique et des Libertés.
Google received the largest fine, and must now pay 150 million euros. The fine issued to Facebook parent company Meta came in at 90 million euros. The CNIL has given the companies three months to make it easier for people to refuse cookies, or it will fine them an additional 100,000 euros.
As with all US tech companies operating globally, Meta and Google are subject to local laws around the world. In France this means complying with Europe-wide privacy laws including the General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR, as well as French national privacy laws. The CNIL has its own set of rules regarding ad trackers, which dictate it should be easy for people to refuse cookie tracking, as well as to reconsider their choice to allow cookie tracking at any time.
A spokesperson for Meta said the company is reviewing the CNIL’s decision. “Our cookie consent controls provide people with greater control over their data, including a new settings menu on Facebook and Instagram where people can revisit and manage their decisions at any time, and we continue to develop and improve these controls,” they said.
