The European Union’s competition authorities have launched a new investigation into Google. This time, the probe concerns the internet giant’s data collection practices.
Previously, Brussels imposed a hefty fine after determining that Google’s advertising policies were unlawful. The fine, amounting to approximately 1.543 billion euros, was, according to the European Commission, a response to Google abusing its dominance in the advertising market. Competitors were allegedly prevented from placing ads on certain websites.
The European Commission is currently seeking information on how Google collects and uses user data. The Commission has sent out questionnaires as part of a preliminary inquiry into Google’s practices. The preliminary investigation is still ongoing, according to the Commission’s statement.
Google stated that the data is used to improve services. The company also emphasized that this data can be deleted, transferred, or otherwise managed by users at any time. If Google uses the data for commercial purposes but does not make it available to other companies, this could be in violation of EU antitrust laws or competition rules.
Earlier, U.S. authorities also launched an investigation into several tech giants, including Google, Apple, Amazon, and Facebook. This was similarly a competition investigation conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice.
In total, the fines that Google has had to pay to the EU now amount to about 9 billion dollars, roughly 8.172 billion euros.