Moderate
Enforcement
Published
European Union · Jan 11, 2022
EDPS reprimands European Parliament for illegal EU‑US data transfers via Google and Stripe
The European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) issued a decision reprimanding the European Parliament for violating data protection law on its COVID‑testing website. The use of Google Analytics and Stripe was found to breach the CJEU's…
European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) · General Data Protection Regulation
Moderate
Fine
In effect
Norway (EEA) · Dec 15, 2021 · effective Dec 15, 2021
Norwegian DPA fines Grindr €6.3 M for illegal sharing of sensitive data
The Norwegian Data Protection Authority imposed a fine of 65 Mio NOK on Grindr for sharing sensitive personal data without valid consent. The authority found the consent mechanism invalid and highlighted the lack of a genuine opt‑out. The…
Norwegian Data Protection Authority · General Data Protection Regulation
Moderate
Guidance
Published
Ireland · Dec 4, 2021
Irish DPC tried to embed Facebook consent bypass into EDPB Guidelines, but final 2019 guidelines omitted it
A letter shows the Irish DPC held ten meetings with Facebook and agreed on a GDPR bypass by moving consent into terms and conditions. The DPC then drafted EDPB guideline language to allow this approach, but other DPAs criticised it…
Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) · General Data Protection Regulation
Moderate
Enforcement
Announced
Ireland · Oct 15, 2021
Irish DPC orders noyb to remove draft decision from website
The Irish Data Protection Commission sent a take‑down request to privacy activist group noyb on 14 Oct 2021, ordering removal of a draft decision that allegedly strips Facebook users of GDPR rights. noyb refused, citing Austrian law and…
Irish Data Protection Commission · General Data Protection Regulation
Moderate
Fine
Announced
Ireland · Sep 2, 2021
Irish DPC issues €225 million fine against WhatsApp
The Irish Data Protection Commission imposed a €225 million fine on WhatsApp (owned by Facebook) under the GDPR. The fine was increased from an initial €50 million after pressure from other EU data protection authorities. Max Schrems of…
Irish Data Protection Commission · General Data Protection Regulation
Moderate
Enforcement
Filed
European Union · Aug 13, 2021
noyb files complaints against cookie paywalls of seven German and Austrian news sites over unlawful consent
noyb filed complaints against the cookie paywalls of SPIEGEL.de, Zeit.de, heise.de, FAZ.net, derStandard.at, krone.at and t-online.de, arguing that the "pay or okay" model violates the GDPR's requirement for freely given consent. The…
EDPB · General Data Protection Regulation
Moderate
Enforcement
Filed
European Union · Aug 10, 2021
noyb files 422 GDPR complaints over deceptive cookie banners
noyb filed 422 formal GDPR complaints with data protection authorities in ten EU countries concerning dark‑pattern cookie banners. After a warning phase, 42% of identified violations were remedied, but 82% of the 516 sites still breach the…
Data Protection Authorities · General Data Protection Regulation
Moderate
Court ruling
Decided
Austria · Jul 20, 2021
Austrian Supreme Court refers Facebook case to CJEU over consent vs contract and awards €500 symbolic damages
The Austrian Supreme Court (OGH) referred four questions to the Court of Justice of the EU concerning Facebook's reliance on contract instead of consent under the GDPR. In a partial judgment, the court awarded Max Schrems €500 for lack of…
EDPB · General Data Protection Regulation
Moderate
Enforcement
Pending
European Union · Jul 19, 2021
noyb reports 2.5‑year delay in GDPR access‑request complaints against streaming services
In January 2019 noyb filed complaints against eight streaming services for failing to comply with the GDPR right of access. After two and a half years only one complaint was resolved after noyb took the responsible authority to court. The…
EDPB · General Data Protection Regulation
Moderate
Court ruling
Decided
European Union · Jul 16, 2021
Anniversary of the CJEU 'Schrems II' decision on EU‑US data transfers
Max Schrems marks one year since the CJEU's Schrems II ruling that declared EU‑US data transfers unlawful. He notes a lack of clear guidance, pending model complaints filed by noyb, and ongoing uncertainty around Standard Contractual…
European Data Protection Board · General Data Protection Regulation
Moderate
Settlement
Settled
European Union · Jul 16, 2021
Max Schrems notes settlement with Irish DPC in Jan 2021 amid Schrems II fallout
The statement highlights that of the 101 model complaints filed by noyb after the Schrems II ruling, none have been decided yet. It notes that the original Facebook complaint led to a settlement with the Irish Data Protection Commission in…
Irish Data Protection Commission · Standard Contractual Clauses
Moderate
Court ruling
Decided
European Union · Jun 24, 2021
European Court of Justice invalidated Privacy Shield in July 2020
The European Court of Justice ruled that the EU‑US Privacy Shield framework is invalid, affecting cross‑border data transfers. The decision was highlighted in noyb’s 2020 Annual Report.
Privacy Shield
Moderate
Proposed regulation
Published
European Union · Jun 14, 2021
noyb and CSL propose Advanced Data Protection Control browser signal to replace cookie banners
noyb and the Sustainable Computing Lab released a technical proposal for an "Advanced Data Protection Control" (ADPC) browser signal. The signal would allow browsers to automatically convey user consent or opt‑in preferences to websites…
EDPB · General Data Protection Regulation
Moderate
Enforcement
Announced
European Union · May 31, 2021
noyb launches automated system, sends 500 draft GDPR cookie‑banner complaints across Europe
noyb sent more than 500 draft GDPR complaints to companies using unlawful cookie banners, offering a one‑month grace period before filing formal complaints. The NGO developed software to detect violations and generate complaints…
EDPB · General Data Protection Regulation
Moderate
Enforcement
Filed
European Union · May 26, 2021 · effective May 25, 2018
Digital Rights alliance files legal complaints across Europe against facial recognition company Clearview AI
Noyb and other EU digital‑rights groups submitted complaints to data‑protection authorities in France, Austria, Italy, Greece and the United Kingdom to halt Clearview AI's mass facial‑recognition surveillance. The regulators have three…
EDPB · General Data Protection Regulation
Moderate
Court ruling
Pending
Austria · Mar 14, 2021
Austrian Supreme Court to consider referral of Facebook GDPR consent bypass case
The Austrian Supreme Court (OGH) has been asked to refer a case concerning Facebook's alleged bypass of GDPR consent rules to the CJEU. The dispute centers on Facebook's claim that a contractual duty to provide personalized advertising…
EDPB · General Data Protection Regulation
Moderate
Enforcement
Announced
Germany · Jan 28, 2021 · deadline Feb 12, 2021
Hamburg DPA preliminarily deems Clearview AI’s biometric profiling of EU residents illegal and orders partial deletion
The Hamburg Data Protection Authority preliminarily found that Clearview AI’s collection of biometric profiles of Europeans violates the GDPR and ordered the deletion of the mathematical hash values of the complainant’s biometric profile.…
Hamburg Data Protection Authority · General Data Protection Regulation
Moderate
Guidance
Published
European Union · Jan 27, 2021
noyb urges stronger GDPR enforcement on European Data Protection Day
noyb highlights that despite the GDPR's strong provisions, compliance remains low and enforcement insufficient. The organization calls on data protection authorities and companies to move from paper rights to real protection, citing the…
EDPB · General Data Protection Regulation
Moderate
Fine
In effect
Norway (EEA) · Jan 26, 2021
Norwegian DPA fines Grindr €9.63 million for illegal sharing of sensitive data
The Norwegian Data Protection Authority imposed a fine of 100 Mio NOK on Grindr for sharing personal and sensitive data without valid consent. The authority found Grindr's consent mechanism invalid and highlighted the company's lack of…
Norwegian Data Protection Authority · General Data Protection Regulation
Moderate
Court ruling
Decided
Luxembourg · Jan 25, 2021
Luxembourg administrative tribunal rules CNPD must handle GDPR complaints against US controllers
The Luxembourg administrative tribunal found that the CNPD wrongly dismissed complaints against US‑based data controllers Apollo and RocketReach and ordered the DPA to reopen the cases. The decision follows earlier appeals by privacy NGO…
Commission Nationale pour la Protection des Données (CNPD) · General Data Protection Regulation
