European Regulators Start to Ban ‘Google Analytics’ Over Privacy Issues

The search engine giant Google had been accused by the European Union of abusing its dominant position in mobile search engines and applications. Now, an increasing number of member states of the European Union are investigating Google Analytics for violations of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

Italy is the third European country to outlaw the service that allows website owners to monitor and evaluate their site traffic. According to the government’s decision, the GDPR is violated since users are not guaranteed a fair process for redress. Consequently, a vast amount of information, including IP addresses, is collected via cookies and sent to the United States, where it may be seen by third parties including the government. Moreover, Caffeina Media, a local provider of web services, has been given 90 days by Italy’s competition authorities to switch its account away from Google Analytics.

European Regulators Start to Ban ‘Google Analytics’ Over Privacy Issues

In reaction to these decisions, Google’s appeals and defenses are typically rejected. The business would be unable to convincingly show that it could anonymize user data from Europe before sending it to the US.

Two other European states are taking similar steps, according to a blog post by Google Analytics rival Simple Analytics. The Data Protection Authority of Austria placed its ban in place in January, while France’s National Commission on the Freedom of Liberation, or CNIL, announced a restriction for the same reason back in February.

By October 2023, Google plans to discontinue the Universal Analytics platform, which mainly relied on trackers to gather information about site visits. This platform is presently used by the majority of Google Analytics clients. Google Analytics 4 is already online, but it’s unlikely to win the E.U. any favors because it relaxes the use of trackers while still appearing to acquire many of the same data via alternative techniques. Over the past few years, Google has also struggled to create new web trackers that respect user privacy.

The “Schrems II” ruling from the Court of Justice of the European Union, which was rendered in 2020, is a major source of support for the prohibition of Google Analytics.

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