France fines Apple $162m for alleged privacy violations

On Monday, the CNIL ruled that Apple’s implementation of the ATT was “neither necessary nor proportionate” to its stated aim of protecting user data.

The feature, introduced in 2021, requires apps to seek user consent before tracking their activity across platforms.

However, critics argue that Apple benefits disproportionately from the system while limiting competitors’ ability to target users.

In addition to the fine, Apple is expected to publish CNIL’s decision on its website for seven days, the agency said in a statement.

The French competition authority noted that Apple’s ATT framework forces users to opt out of tracking twice instead of once, making the process more cumbersome.

The CNIL said it also found that smaller publishers, reliant on advertising revenue from data collection, were disproportionately affected.

Apple, in its response, said it was “disappointed” but emphasised that no changes were required to ATT.

“The feature gives users more control over their privacy through a clear and consistent prompt for all developers, including Apple,” the company said.

Meanwhile, regulators in Germany, Italy, Romania, and Poland have opened similar investigations into ATT’s impact on the digital advertising market.

The fine comes a year after the European Union hit Apple with a €1.8 billion anti-trust fine for thwarting rival music streaming services on its app store.