# Google hit with €403M EU fine for location data misuse

> Ireland's data protection regulator penalizes Google for unlawfully processing user location information across multiple services.
- Title: Google hit with €403M EU fine for location data misuse
- Summary: Ireland's data protection regulator penalizes Google for unlawfully processing user location information across multiple services. Google failed to lawfully…
- Keywords: google, privacy violation, location data, gdpr, ireland data protection commission, fine, web and app activity, location history, android, hit, 403M, location
- Source: Fortune — https://fortune.com/2026/09/21/google-fined-403-million-by-eu-over-location-data-privacy-violations
- Author: The Associated Press
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: google, eu, privacy violation, location data, gdpr, ireland data protection commission, fine, web and app activity, location history, android
## Google fined 403 million euros
Ireland's Data Protection Commission penalized Google for mishandling location data across multiple services, violating EU privacy rules.
## Three location services violated
Google unlawfully processed location data in Web & App Activity, Location History, and Location Accuracy features on Android phones.
## Investigation spanned six years
Regulators opened the case six years ago and examined Google's practices from 2018 until February 2020 under the General Data Protection Regulation.
## Location data reveals private info
Regulators warned that location data can infer sensitive personal information about individuals, including inherently private details about their movements and habits.

> Location data can greatly enhance the utility of online services, but it can also reveal a significant amount of information about an individual, including information that is inherently private.
## Fourth largest Irish privacy fine
This is the fourth biggest EU privacy fine issued by Ireland's watchdog, which has previously fined TikTok and Meta, including a 1.2 billion euro penalty for Meta.
## Google says practices have evolved
Google stated it has significantly updated its location data policies since 2019 and launched tools to help users manage their location information more easily.

> From 2019 onwards, we've significantly evolved our practices and launched robust tools that make managing location data simple.
## Key takeaway

Google failed to lawfully handle location data in Web & App Activity, Location History, and Location Accuracy features, resulting in the fourth-largest EU privacy fine from Irish regulators.