Italy closes Google probe over unfair use of personal data after remedies adopted

Italy's competition authority said on Friday it had closed a probe it had launched last year over Google's alleged unfair commercial practices in the use of personal data after the online search giant adopted remedies.

In July 2024 the authority opened an investigation as the request Google sent its users for consent to connect to its services "could constitute a misleading and aggressive commercial practice", and that the information it provided was "incomplete and misleading".

After the regulator's probe, Google will change its consent request "by providing clearer and more accurate information on the implications of consent for the use of personal data", as well as on the range and volume of its services where consent may involve the "combination" and "cross-use" of personal data, the antitrust body said in statement.