French watchdog fines Google 100 million euros for breaching cookies rules

PARIS: France's data privacy watchdog has handed out its biggest ever fine of 100 million euros ($121 million) to Alphabet's Google for breaching the country's rules on online advertising trackers (cookies).

The CNIL said in a statement on Thursday it had also fined U.S. e-commerce giant Amazon 35 million euros for breaching the same rules.

The regulator found the French websites of Google and Amazon didn't seek the prior consent of visitors before advertising cookies were saved on computers, it said in a statement.


Google and Amazon also failed to provide clear information to internet users about how the two firms intended to make use of such online trackers and how visitors of their French websites could refuse any use of the cookies, the watchdog said.

The CNIL said Amazon and Google had three months to change the information banners. If they failed to do so, they would face an additional fine of 100,000 euros per day until the modifications are made.

The financial penalty against Google is the biggest ever issued by the CNIL, a spokesman for the watchdog said.

The previous record fine of 50 million euros also targeted the U.S. tech giant for breaching European Union data privacy rules.

Amazon and Google didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.