A group of European consumer watchdogs has used the EU ’s data protection framework , GDPR , to launch a formal complaint against Google . In it they claimed the company is using Location History and Web & App Activity settings to track users without fair legal basis . These are part of all Google apps and the watchdogs said it would be difficult to deactivate them . The Norwegian Consumer Council specifically criticised the use of accessed location and search information for advertisement targeting . “Google is processing incredibly detailed and extensive personal data without proper legal grounds, and the data has been acquired through manipulation techniques,” said Gro Mette Moen, acting head of the Norwegian Consumer Council’s digital services unit in a statement. Google has said it will investigate the complaint " to see if there are things we can take on board " .
A group of European consumer watchdogs has used the EU ’s data protection framework , GDPR , to launch a formal complaint against Google . In it they claimed the company is using Location History and Web & App Activity settings to track users without fair legal basis . These are part of all Google apps and the watchdogs said it would be difficult to deactivate them . The Norwegian Consumer Council specifically criticised the use of accessed location and search information for advertisement targeting . Google has said it will investigate the complaint " to see if there are things we can take on board " .