Consumer advocates from seven European States want to take action against potential privacy violations of the US Internet giant. Google track movements and locations of millions of users, so the accusation.
The General data protection regulation (DSGVO) should bring Europe more data security. Because Google knows when we leave the house, go to work, in a traffic jam. Where we buy Christmas gifts? When, where, and how long we go to Church and if we look there, or in the office YouTube Videos? The Google know. Even after the introduction of the DSGVO, complain, consumer advocates in seven EU countries.
However, you want to feed in to the national data protection authorities complaint, such as the European consumer Association (BEUC) announced on Tuesday. The German verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband (vzbv) will consider the suit, therefore, even an omission.
“Google’s hunger for Data is obvious, but the extent to which it leads its users astray, every move to follow and to make money, is stunning,” said BEUC Director-General Monique Goyens.
Hunger for data with System
The authorities accuse Google, to use even after the introduction of the new rules continues to be the location function of mobile phones with the Google operating system and refer to an analysis of the Norwegian consumer protection Agency. All of this is done with the consent of the user. However, manipulated the Google and Facebook users are quite aware of to deter to change your privacy settings, is it from Norway.
So, the group will not give, for example, users often enough information to make sensible decisions. Android users have turned off location services, know also the always recurring call, them on again. “Through clever Design, privacy-threatening, the Norwegian consumer advocates summarized at the end of the default settings and the ‘ride-or-die’electoral opportunities,” taxes, the companies user is aware, and bring you as much information as possible to disclose their results.
“These unfair practices, leave consumers in the dark about the use of their personal data,” said the European Federation. This was not in accordance with the DSGVO.
Market power makes it possible
Google is with Android, the world’s largest provider of mobile phone operating systems, it is at about two billion Smartphones in the world. In the US, the group is already a court case to face. This is the so-called Tracking of mobile phones regardless of the privacy settings of the users.
Google argues, however, that the location function is turned off by default and enable in addition, the Modify, and Delete data. In addition, a “Pause”function. “Is paused, the function that we make it clear, can it be that we collect depending on your phone and App settings still location data and use it to improve the Google user experience.”
EU vs Google goes in the next round
Because of its (over)powerful operating system, Google must pay a record fine of 4.3 billion Euro to the EU. The EU cartel office is buzzing the group as a penalty, because Google distributes its operating system for free, but phone manufacturers like Samsung strict conditions had been imposed, the harm to the competition. It is only one of several antitrust case against the US group.
Another headwind could come in the Form of a European digital tax, which is against Google but also against other large Internet companies. So European governments want to be generated to ensure a “fair taxation” in the countries where sales. De facto, it is an attempt to prevent the tax avoidance by the Internet giants.
pcb/hb (dpa, afp, rtr)