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Amazon hit with record E.U. data privacy fine

The fine of more than $886 million is for violating the region's GDP rules, which require companies to seek people’s consent before using their personal data or face steep fines.
Amazon.com Inc. Fulfilment Center Operations On Amazon Prime Da
An Amazon worker collects a package from a conveyor at an Amazon Inc. fulfillment center in Frankenthal, Germany, on Oct. 13, 2020.Thorsten Wagner / Bloomberg via Getty Images file

Amazon has been hit with a record $886.6 million European Union fine for processing personal data in violation of the bloc’s GDPR rules, as privacy regulators take a more aggressive position on enforcement.

The Luxembourg National Commission for Data Protection (CNPD) imposed the fine on Amazon in a July 16 decision, the company disclosed in a regulatory filing on Friday.

Amazon will appeal the fine, according to a company spokesperson. The e-commerce giant said in the filing it believed CNPD’s decision was without merit.

CNPD did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The E.U.’s General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR, requires companies to seek people’s consent before using their personal data or face steep fines.

Globally, regulatory scrutiny of tech giants has been increasing following a string of scandals over privacy and misinformation, as well as complaints from some businesses that they abuse their market power.

Alphabet’s Google, Facebook, Apple and Microsoft have drawn heightened scrutiny in Europe.

In December, France’s data privacy watchdog handed out its biggest ever fine of 100 million euros ($118.82 million) to Google for breaching the nation’s rules on online advertising trackers.