On Thursday, 13 June 2024, Austrian privacy and digital rights campaign group NOYB announced that it had filed a complaint with the Austrian data protection authority (DPA) against Alphabet's Google for allegedly tracking users of its Chrome Web browser. The complaint focuses on the company's Privacy Sandbox initiative designed to replace third-party tracking cookies and a popup asking users to "turn on ad privacy feature".
In an email to NOYB, Google argues the popup provided users with a clear choice under Article 6(1)(a) of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and that by turning on the feature, users are agreeing to internal browser tracking. NOYB claims Google has tricked users into consenting for tracking under the guise of an ad privacy feature, a clear violation of GDPR Article 4(11) that consent must, among other things, be a "specific, informed and unambiguous indication of the data subject's wishes".
In a statement, NOYB honorary chair Max Schrems said, "Google has simply lied to its users. People thought they were agreeing to a privacy feature, but were tricked into accepting Google's first-party ad tracking. Consent has to be informed, transparent and fair to be legal. Google has done the exact opposite."
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