Overview
- Ireland’s Data Protection Commission issued the decision on Monday, September 21, 2026, imposing a €403 million administrative fine on Google for GDPR infringements tied to location data.
- The DPC said failures around clarity and control meant users could have been unaware their location was used to target ads or infer personal interests and that keeping location records longer than necessary worsened that loss of control.
- The inquiry reviewed Google’s handling of “web and app activity,” “location history” and “location accuracy” for the period from 25 May 2018 to 4 February 2020 and was taken by the DPC commissioners Dr Des Hogan, Dale Sunderland and Niamh Sweeney.
- Google responded that the case concerns historical policies changed from 2019 and pointed to new tools and controls it has rolled out to let people manage location data.
- The ruling requires corrective measures within six months and comes as the DPC pursues three other large-scale statutory inquiries into Google that are at advanced stages, a development that could lead to further enforcement across the EEA.