French antitrust regulator fines Apple $162 million for violating privacy laws

The French competition authority, the Autorité de la Concurrence , announced on March 31 that it had fined Apple $162 million for its complex and one-sided system of processing users' personal data through a feature called App Tracking Transparency (ATT).

The regulator found that the consent process required by the ATT system was too burdensome for users and was in breach of the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the French Personal Data Protection Act. The GDPR applies to all companies operating in the European Union and offering products or services. Apple was required to display an additional consent window to comply with these legal obligations. However, multiple pop-up windows make it very difficult to use the apps.

ATT also violated the recommendations on net neutrality issued by the CNIL ( National Commission for Informatics and Liberties ). The regulator criticized Apple for not treating app developers the same way it treats itself, or rather, for its asymmetrical approach.

The regulator took into account the fact that the ATT's violations lasted from April 2021 to July 2023 and Apple's economic power when determining the amount of the fine. This suggests that other EU countries may also take action against Apple, especially considering that in March this year the European Commission accused Apple of two violations of the Digital Markets Act (DMA). Bringing the ATT into line with GDPR requirements would allow Apple to avoid further sanctions.

The problems with the ATT began in 2020, before the system was even launched. Several organizations filed complaints with the Autorité regarding the ATT's failure to allow advertising. Targeted advertising is an important source of revenue for app developers and other digital advertising entities. In a decision issued on March 17, 2021 , the Autorité refused to impose provisional measures, but indicated that the investigation would continue. In 2023, the CNIL and the Autorité issued a joint statement on the balance between competition law and data privacy.

The ATT system was launched in April 2021 in iOS 14.5, iPadOS 14.5, and tvOS 14.5 . It asks for permission in a special window before a user's activities on apps and websites owned by other companies are tracked . Tracking occurs when information that identifies a user or their device is combined with similar information from other sources. This information may also be shared with data brokers.

Author: Alexandra Bennett

Source: Jurist.org