This is the largest fine pronounced in 2022 by the National Commission for Information Technology and Civil Liberties (CNIL). The authority, guardian of the privacy of the French, has fined the large American group specializing in computer science Microsoft 60 million euros, for not having allowed to simply refuse cookies on its search engine Bing, according to a statement published Thursday, December 22.
The country’s privacy watchdog said it had imposed the fine – so far, the largest this year – over the company’s unscrupulous use of ad cookies.
Cookies are small files of information that a web server generates and sends to a web browser when a user visits a website. They are typically used to personalize the user experience, but also for advertising purposes.
In a statement released on Thursday, France’s National Commission for Technology and Freedoms (CNIL) stated that Microsoft’s search engine, Bing, did not allow users to opt out of cookies easily enough.
Investigations by French officials concluded that “when users visited this site, cookies were deposited on their terminal without their consent.” The watchdog said that “these cookies were used, among others, for advertising purposes.”
The CNIL also found that “there was no button allowing to refuse the deposit of cookies as easily as accepting it.”
The watchdog explained that Microsoft ended up receiving a share of third-party advertising profits which, in turn, accrued thanks to the data collected via cookies.
In a statement released on Thursday, France’s National Commission for Technology and Freedoms (CNIL) stated that Microsoft’s search engine, Bing, did not allow users to opt out of cookies easily enough.
Investigations by French officials concluded that “when users visited this site, cookies were deposited on their terminal without their consent.” The watchdog said that “these cookies were used, among others, for advertising purposes.”
The CNIL also found that “there was no button allowing to refuse the deposit of cookies as easily as accepting it.”
The Commission’s restricted panel also ordered Microsoft to change its practices on the bing.com site within three months, under penalty of a fine of €60,000 per day of delay.
The watchdog explained that Microsoft ended up receiving a share of third-party advertising profits which, in turn, accrued thanks to the data collected via cookies.
