A number of consumer rights activists are having their say about Google and they’re not happy. The groups have filed a number of privacy complaints against the tech giant while accusing its new design of deceiving users while creating accounts.
According to the complaints, Google forces users to agree to a number of data processing that they believe are not only invasive in design but also extensive.
To help fulfill its legal requirements, Google says it needs to carry out a number of proceedings to get its ad targeting maneuver up and running. And this includes taking consent from those involved.
But under the new data protection plan of the EU, the GDPR says there needs to be an added element of privacy installed for users as a part of the program’s default settings. This includes placing some stringent conditions regarding how to take consent so that it can be deemed lawful.
According to the activists, Google’s entire layout is extremely deceptive by design and hence can easily trick a user into accepting a clause that allows for its tracking.
The groups continue to put up a fight that the design options provided by Google make vulnerable targets agree to whatever is being asked, paving the way for easy manipulation so they can be targeted with a more personalized ad approach.
Google has launched the ordeal under the title of manual personalization which enables users to follow 5 steps and then click 10 times to process informative details that the groups deem to be incomplete, so unclear, and thoroughly misleading.
But if that was not bad enough, another deceiving tactic being used by the search engine giant is their express personalization option. This will enable all forms of tracking while making it horrible for privacy.
Google has also been accused of not providing any option that switches off tracking as a whole. Whatever the case may be, the complaint lodged says Google is providing consumers with little choice in terms of saying no to their tracking and that’s not fair.
The entire process is being called out as shady and untransparent and used for purposes that solely benefit Google alone, as stated in a recent press release.
All of these recent complaints are now a part of data protection firms seen across the EU and other similar member groups located in Norway, Slovenia, Greece, and France.
Google has responded to the complaints publicly, adding how it keeps user privacy as a top priority and therefore is more than willing to address any concerns the EU may have on this matter. They hope to give more users clearer choices while making sure users are well aware of how data can be generated through their choices.
We saw another similar concern be raised by France in 2018 where it fined Google a staggering $57 million in regards to transparency breaches and consent matters on how Android is operated.
It looks like Google will be taking some time out to build a strong case that can help justify its behavior and until then, we’ll just need to wait and watch.
Read next: Google Chrome’s New Version Is Bringing Better Video Calling Experiences While Adding New Developer Tools
According to the complaints, Google forces users to agree to a number of data processing that they believe are not only invasive in design but also extensive.
To help fulfill its legal requirements, Google says it needs to carry out a number of proceedings to get its ad targeting maneuver up and running. And this includes taking consent from those involved.
But under the new data protection plan of the EU, the GDPR says there needs to be an added element of privacy installed for users as a part of the program’s default settings. This includes placing some stringent conditions regarding how to take consent so that it can be deemed lawful.
According to the activists, Google’s entire layout is extremely deceptive by design and hence can easily trick a user into accepting a clause that allows for its tracking.
The groups continue to put up a fight that the design options provided by Google make vulnerable targets agree to whatever is being asked, paving the way for easy manipulation so they can be targeted with a more personalized ad approach.
Google has launched the ordeal under the title of manual personalization which enables users to follow 5 steps and then click 10 times to process informative details that the groups deem to be incomplete, so unclear, and thoroughly misleading.
But if that was not bad enough, another deceiving tactic being used by the search engine giant is their express personalization option. This will enable all forms of tracking while making it horrible for privacy.
Google has also been accused of not providing any option that switches off tracking as a whole. Whatever the case may be, the complaint lodged says Google is providing consumers with little choice in terms of saying no to their tracking and that’s not fair.
The entire process is being called out as shady and untransparent and used for purposes that solely benefit Google alone, as stated in a recent press release.
All of these recent complaints are now a part of data protection firms seen across the EU and other similar member groups located in Norway, Slovenia, Greece, and France.
Google has responded to the complaints publicly, adding how it keeps user privacy as a top priority and therefore is more than willing to address any concerns the EU may have on this matter. They hope to give more users clearer choices while making sure users are well aware of how data can be generated through their choices.
We saw another similar concern be raised by France in 2018 where it fined Google a staggering $57 million in regards to transparency breaches and consent matters on how Android is operated.
It looks like Google will be taking some time out to build a strong case that can help justify its behavior and until then, we’ll just need to wait and watch.
Read next: Google Chrome’s New Version Is Bringing Better Video Calling Experiences While Adding New Developer Tools