Intro
Will Google Analytics Bans Be Reversed In The EU?
Throughout 2022 5 EU countries made Google Analytics illegal. This is a scary prospect as GDPR fines are €20 million or 4% of annual turnover whichever is bigger. This leaves companies using GA in these countries exposed to large fines. At the moment GA is illegal in the following countries:
- France
- Italy
- Austria
- The Netherlands
- Denmark
The major reason being Google Analytics transfers data to the US. This data is then accessible to US Intelligence services and is not adequately protected. This is in direct violation of the GDPR.
This could all be set to change as President Biden has just signed a new executive order to implement a new privacy shield for data transfer between the US and EU.
Sounds like some light at the end of the tunnel right?
Maybe not, experts from both sides of the pond say this new shield does not go far enough. Some of the big issues especially the accessing of EU citizens' data still exist.
My take is that this agreement will be pushed back by the EU Commission. It will probably take a few revisions for it to be in line with the GDPR and EU privacy law. We are to expect an update from the EU in March 2023.
I'd be expecting GA to remain illegal in at least these countries for a while longer.
The Data Weekly
News
Europe’s Move Against Google Analytics Is Just the Beginning | WIRED UK
This a great article outlining the reasons for Austria's Google Analytics ban from Wired. Gives good context as to why this happened.
wired.co.uk
FACT SHEET: President Biden Signs Executive Order to Implement the European Union-U.S. Data Privacy Framework | The White House
The White Houses fact sheet which details some of the points on the new Privacy Shield Framework.
whitehouse.gov
White House announces new surveillance guardrails to meet EU Privacy Shield expectations
A thought piece detailing what the impact of this new executive order may be. Spoiler alert experts on both sides of the pond do not think the US is going far enough. They expect this to be kicked back by the European Commission.
cyberscoop.com