The regulatory authorities in seven Member States of the European Union have requested measures against Google, because it seems that the IT company has violated the laws on the protection of personal data by monitoring the movement of persons.
The complaints from regulators in Norway, the Netherlands, Greece, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Poland and Sweden show that tracking the location by the US company violates the General Data Protection Regulation. The conclusion was done on the basis of Norwegian surveys, around which the other regulators unite.
The European Consumer Protection Group argues that Google collects data for people primarily through “location history” and “networking and applications” using “different tricks and practices” to make sure these functions are activated.
The group (also known as BEUC, the abbreviation of its name in French) says that consumers are not properly informed about how their personal data are being used, nor there is a genuine choice for their provision offered.
“Google’s hunger for data is known, but the scale by which the company lies to its customers to monitor and monetize each of their steps is breath-taking,” the chief director of BEUC Monique Goyens said in a speech.
“The situation is more than worrying and smartphones are used to spy every action. This is not the digital society in which European consumers want to live,” the speech continues.
Google was attacked at the US court in August with a trial based on similar claims. An investigation into the company’s practices began in the state of Arizona in September.
“The location history is turned off by default and you can edit, delete, or temporarily paste it. If included, it helps to improve services such as traffic prediction during your journey,” said a Google spokesman in response to an e-mail.
However, there is also the dark moment of concern and is becoming the basis for the new investigation.
“If you pause it, we will make it clear that – depending on individual settings on your phone and app – we can still collect and use location data to improve your work with Google ‘, says the company unwillingly.
