France fines Yahoo 10 million euros over cookie abuse

France’s data protection watchdog said Thursday it has fined Yahoo 10 million euros for not respecting users’ refusal of Internet-tracking “cookies” or causing them to lose access to email accounts if they did so.

The fine imposed in December, equivalent to $10.9 million, came after the CNIL authority received and investigated complaints in October 2020 and June 2021.

It found that even when visitors to the main Yahoo.com site clicked a button to decline cookies, they were still exposed to about 20 digital trackers collected for advertising purposes.

Additionally, Yahoo Mail users who attempted to withdraw consent for cookies were warned that they would no longer have access to messaging or other Yahoo services.

“In determining the amount of the fine, the Sanctions Committee took into account the fact that the company did not respect the choices of Internet users with regard to cookies and that it took measures to prevent them from withdrawing their consent to the submission of cookies Were.” CNIL said.

Since the advent of the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in 2018, internet companies have faced stricter rules for obtaining consent from users on how to use their personal information.

France has imposed fines totaling nearly 400 million euros, reprimanding companies including Google, Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, Apple and TikTok for violations.

(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – AFP)