Google now fined Rs 1265 crore in France, action on Facebook too

French data privacy watchdog CNIL has fined Google a record 150 million euros (about Rs 1,265 crore). It is alleged that Google has made it difficult for Internet users to refuse cookies. CNIL has said that Facebook of Meta Platforms was also fined 60 million euros (approximately Rs 505 crore) for the same reason. The watchdog said in a statement, citing Google’s video-streaming platform, “CNIL has found that facebook.com, google.fr and youtube.com do not allow cookies to be denied as easily as possible.” They have to experience.

According to a Reuters report, the authority has given the two companies three months to comply with its orders. Delay in this could lead to an additional fine of EUR 100,000 (about Rs 85 crore) per day. Under the orders, Google and Facebook will have to provide French Internet users with simple tools to refuse cookies. CNIL said Google and Facebook provided a virtual button to allow immediate approval of cookies, but there was no virtual button to deny cookies.

A Google spokesperson said that people trust us to respect and protect their right to privacy. We consider it our responsibility to protect that trust. We are committed to working with CNIL as part of this decision. Facebook has not yet responded to the issue.

In recent times, Google has faced fines from many countries. Recently, the company was also fined heavily in Russia. A Moscow court said it is fining Google 7.2 billion rubles (about Rs 735 crore) for failing to remove illegal content. This is the first major revenue-based fine of its kind in Russia. In a campaign this year, Russia has increased the pressure on large companies. This is being seen as an attempt by Russia to tighten control of the Internet. Critics say it threatens personal and corporate liberties. Facebook has also paid 17 million rubles (about Rs 1.73 crore) in fines to Russia. The fine was imposed on the company for not removing illegal content in Russia.