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• GDPR Compliance Checklist : A Detailed Walkthrough

  14 septembre 2023, par Erin — GDPR

  As digital transformation drives global economies, data has become a valuable currency to businesses of all shapes and sizes. As a result, the complex issue of data privacy is often in the spotlight.

  The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is the key legal framework in the European Union to protect individual privacy and regulate business data handling. 

  Compliance with the GDPR is not just a legal mandate, it’s also good business. An 86% majority of users want more control over their data and 47% of users have switched providers over data privacy concerns.

  To help guide your business decisions around user privacy, this article will cover the key principles of GDPR, including a comprehensive GDPR compliance checklist.

  The key principles and requirements of GDPR

  Before we can translate GDPR’s objectives into practical steps, let’s begin with the defining features and key principles.

  GDPR : An overview

  The GDPR bolsters and unifies data protection standards for everyone within the EU. Enacted in 2018, it represented a seismic shift for companies and public authorities alike in protecting personal information. Its primary objective is to offer greater control to individuals over their data and to hold organisations accountable for its protection.

  GDPR establishes a legal framework that mandates corporate compliance with key principles to ensure user data security, transparency and choice. It sets the terms for your organisation’s privacy practices and the landscape of legal obligations you must navigate in data handling. 

  Key principles of GDPR

  There are seven core principles pivotal to GDPR compliance, which provide a roadmap for ethical and legal data practices.

  

  • Lawfulness, fairness and transparency : This principle demands lawful and fair processing of personal data. Companies should be transparent about their data processing activities, providing clear information in an accessible form.
  • Purpose limitation : Personal data should be collected for explicit, legitimate purposes and not further processed in a way incompatible with those purposes. This demands careful planning of data processing activities.
  • Data minimisation : Companies should only collect personal data that are necessary for their specified purposes, as anything more than this is illegal. This principle emphasises the importance of limiting scope, rather than performing blanket data collection.
  • Accuracy : This principle calls for maintaining data that is accurate, up-to-date and not misleading. Regular internal audits and updates are crucial to following this principle.
  • Storage limitation : Personal data should only be kept for as long as necessary for the purposes for which it was collected. This underscores the need for a detailed retention policy in your GDPR compliance efforts.
  • Integrity and confidentiality : Companies should protect personal data from unauthorised or unlawful processing and accidental loss or damage. Your organisation’s technical security measures play a vital role in this.
  • Accountability : Organisations should be able to demonstrate their compliance with GDPR principles. This underscores the importance of records of processing activities and regular audits as part of your compliance checklist.

  The importance of GDPR compliance for businesses

  Embracing GDPR compliance isn’t merely a matter of avoiding penalties — it’s a commitment to principles that reflect integrity, transparency and respect for personal data. At Matomo, we champion these principles, empowering companies with powerful and compliant web analytics. We make the compliance journey accessible and straightforward, making sure website analytics aligns with legal obligations and ethical practices.

  The implications of non-compliance

  It’s easy to highlight the dramatic fines imposed on tech giants such as Google and Meta. However, it’s essential to recognise that GDPR compliance extends to all companies, including small businesses — for whom even smaller fines can have a significant impact.

  The implications of non-compliance aren’t limited to financial penalties alone, either. Failing to meet obligations can tarnish reputations, erode trust and hinder business activities. Non-compliance could lead to a breach of privacy policy, causing a ripple effect that may be challenging to overcome.

  The potential benefits of being GDPR compliant

  Adhering to GDPR regulations is more than a checkbox on a form — it’s a comprehensive approach to handling personal data responsibly. It fosters trust, opens doors to European customers and builds enduring relationships with individuals whose rights are protected. In fulfilling these obligations and practices, businesses not only meet legal requirements but also foster a culture of ethical conduct and business success.

  Comprehensive GDPR compliance checklist

  Ensuring GDPR compliance may seem like a complex task, but this detailed checklist will simplify your journey. From consent management to data security, we’ve got you covered.

  

  Establish personal data collection and consent management

  When it comes to GDPR compliance, not all consent is created equal. Two distinct forms exist : explicit consent and implied consent. But what exactly sets them apart, and why does it matter to your organisational measures ?

  Explicit consent from users means that the individual has unequivocally agreed to the processing of personal data. It’s an unambiguous agreement, often obtained through a deliberate action like ticking a box. Details are paramount, as the person giving consent must be fully informed about the processing activities.

  • Inform clearly : Use plain language to explain how data will be used and be transparent about processing practices.
  • Obtain active agreement : Use forms or checkboxes (not pre-ticked boxes) to ensure active participation and that you are obtaining explicit user consent.
  • Document it : Keep records of consent, including when and how it was obtained, as a crucial part of your compliance efforts.
  • Facilitate withdrawal : Use consent mechanisms that allow for easy withdrawal of consent for users who decide to opt out.
  • Manage consent forms : Tools like Matomo’s Consent Management Platform can provide accessible forms that not only enhance transparency but also empower individuals, allowing them to feel in control of their details and rights.

  Facilitate data subject rights and access requests

  GDPR emphasises individual rights by empowering users with control over their personal data processing. Here’s a succinct breakdown :

  • Know the rights of individuals : GDPR outlines individual rights such as data access, error rectification, erasure and data portability, allowing individuals to guide how their details are used, processed or shared.
  • Simplify complying with access requests : Companies must respond to access requests efficiently, usually within one month, without undue delay, reflecting organisational measures of respect.
  • Employ ethical and compliant digital analytics : As a leader in ethical web analytics, Matomo subtly aids in compliance efforts, protecting privacy without compromising functionality.

  These practices align with a modern understanding of privacy, emphasising more than legal obligations. By employing Matomo, companies simplify the processing of access requests, which fosters transparency and user control over personal data.

  Implement clear data privacy practices

  Data privacy and consent mechanisms are key tools for compliance. Crafting a comprehensive privacy policy helps protect individuals’ rights and provides integrity in personal data processing. Designing sites and applications with data protection in mind ensures your compliance from the ground-up.

  • Create an easy to understand privacy policy : Create a clear, GDPR-compliant privacy policy that details processing activities, storage limitations and organisational measures, all in plain language. 

  By implementing these steps, companies not only adhere to their legal obligations but also foster an inclusive community that values privacy and ethics. Whether you’re an IT professional or marketer, Matomo’s platform can guide you through the maze of GDPR complexities, inspiring positive change towards responsible data handling.

  Implement data storage limitations and robust security

  Data storage and security are foundational elements of compliance efforts. Companies must foster a proactive approach to preventing data breaches by understanding potential cyberthreats and enforcing appropriate security controls across applications and infrastructures.

  

  • Implement storage limitations : Define limitations on time and scope to avert undue retention and protect personal details.
  • Embrace technical security : Utilise secure processes like encryption, access controls, firewalls and so on, bolstering protection by design.
  • Establish a comprehensive security policy : Align security practices with privacy laws and regulations, including GDPR.
  • React swiftly to personal data breaches : A security breach requires an immediate response, without undue delay, to honour legal obligations and maintain customer trust. Develop a plan for notifying supervisory authorities and affected individuals promptly in the event of a personal data breach.

  Security measures for personal data are about more than just fulfilling legal obligations — they’re about building a safe and ethical digital ecosystem that instils confidence in customers.

  Keep cross-border data transfers in mind

  Cross-border data transfers present a unique challenge, with increased complexity due to varying data privacy laws across regions. You must understand the respective regulations of participating countries and align your compliance practices appropriately to respect all that are relevant to your organisation. 

  For example, data privacy laws in the US are generally more lax than the GDPR so US companies taking on EU customers must hold themselves to a higher standard, with stricter controls placed on their data processing practices.

  • Evaluate third-party services : For companies utilising global networks of third-party services, be sure to select providers that maintain ongoing knowledge and vigilance towards privacy law compliance. Platforms like Matomo that innately prioritise transparency and privacy, have implemented robust security measures, and document transfers diligently are worth considering. 

  Conduct internal audits and compliance checks

  Compliance is not a “one and done” setup, but an ongoing journey requiring regular internal audits. Systems settings can drift over time, and datasets can become increasingly complex as companies scale. Human error happens, too. Audits identify gaps in your compliance efforts to guide actionable improvements. 

  • Conduct regular audits : Stay proactive with internal audits and systematic monitoring, adapting policies to align with privacy laws. Clarity in privacy notices and cookie banners fosters confidence, while regular assessments ensure alignment with GDPR requirements.
  • Ensure transparency : Platforms like Matomo simplify audits, offering valuable insights and support for ethical web analytics and transparency. The right platform can increase visibility and make generating your reports easier. Integrating these processes guarantees GDPR-aligned measures while emphasising data ownership and customer-centric values.
  • Educate and train staff : Engage in ongoing staff education and training on GDPR compliance, privacy policies, and their related responsibilities.

  

  Case study : GDPR compliance in action

  Achieving compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) stands as a paramount concern for businesses worldwide. Both small and large companies have embarked on this journey, implementing measures and revising privacy policies to conform to these regulations.

  Typeform

  Based in Ireland, Typeform, a company dealing with online forms, took GDPR compliance very seriously. Here’s how they achieved it :

  1. Conducting a data protection impact assessment (DPIA) : This vital step helped them assess personal data breach risks and enabled systematic monitoring of potential challenges.
  2. Implementing technical and organisational measures : Security measures such as encryption, access control and drafting a security policy reinforced their personal data processing mechanisms.
  3. Revamping privacy policy : They transformed their privacy policy with accessible, plain language, making it clear and user-friendly.
  4. Appointing a data protection officer (DPO) : This aligned with their core activities and strengthened their compliance efforts.

  The benefits for Typeform were profound :

  • Enhanced customer trust and confidence
  • Reduced risk of fines and penalties
  • Bolstered data security and privacy
  • Improved brand reputation, positioning them favourably among European customers

  Ensuring GDPR Compliance with Matomo Analytics

  Matomo is more than just an analytics platform ; it is a trusted guide in the realm of data privacy. Our mission is to empower users with full data ownership, fostering an inclusive digital community built on trust and transparency. Our suite of features has been meticulously designed to align with GDPR regulations, ensuring that businesses can navigate the complexities of compliance with ease and confidence.

  1. Data Anonymisation

  Matomo’s focus on ethical digital analytics means the platform allows for the anonymisation of user data, ensuring that individual identities remain protected.

  2. Robust GDPR Management

  Beyond just a GDPR Manager, Matomo provides an encompassing framework to streamline compliance activities. From managing user consent to meticulous record-keeping of processing activities, Matomo ensures you are always a step ahead.

  3. User Empowerment with Opt-Out Capabilities

  Matomo respects user choices. The platform offers users an easy way to opt-out of all tracking, giving them control over their data.

  4. First-party Cookies as the Standard

  By using first-party cookies by default, Matomo ensures data remains with the website owner, minimising potential breaches or misuse.

  5. Transparent Data Collection Practices

  Users have the right to know their data. With Matomo, they can view the exact data being collected, reinforcing a transparent relationship between businesses and their users.

  6. Visitor Data Management

  Upon request, Matomo offers capabilities to delete visitor data, aligning with the GDPR’s right to be forgotten.

  7. Data Ownership and Privacy Assurance

  Unlike other web analytics platforms, with Matomo, you retain full ownership of your data and can rest assured that it is not being used for other purposes such as advertising.

  8. IP Anonymisation

  Protecting user location details, Matomo anonymises IP addresses, adding an additional layer of privacy.

  9. Customisable Data Visualisation

  Recognising that not all data is essential, Matomo allows the disabling of visitor logs and profiles, giving businesses the flexibility to decide what data they track.

  By taking a holistic approach to GDPR compliance, Matomo streamlines the processes for you and ensures you follow the legal and ethical best practices.

  

  Start your GDPR compliance journey today

  The global focus on data privacy requires using a GDPR compliance checklist. With 137 countries implementing data protection laws (UN), companies must align with international standards. Compliance, after all, goes beyond avoiding breaches— it’s about upholding privacy and building trust.

  As your trusted guide, Matomo invites you on this GDPR journey. With us, you’ll uphold privacy obligations and manage your processing activities effectively. Compliance isn’t a one-time task but a continuous journey to enhance practices and align with individual rights. Start this vital journey with Matomo today. Try it free for 21-days. No credit card required.

  Disclaimer

  We are not lawyers and don’t claim to be. The information provided here is to help give an introduction to GDPR. We encourage every business and website to take data privacy seriously and discuss these issues with your lawyer if you have any concerns.

• Top 5 Web Analytics Tools for Your Site

  11 août 2023, par Erin — Analytics Tips

  At the start of July 2023, Universal Analytics (UA) users had to say goodbye to their preferred web analytics tool as Google discontinued it. While some find Google Analytics 4 (GA4) can do what they need, many GA4 users are starting to realise GA4 doesn’t meet all the needs UA once fulfilled. Consequently, they are actively seeking another web analytics tool to complement GA4 and address those unmet requirements effectively.

  In this article, we’ll break down five of the top web analytics tools on the market. You’ll find details about their core capabilities, pricing structures and some noteworthy pros and cons to help you decide which tool is the right fit for you. We’ve also included some key features a good web analytics tool should have to give you a baseline for comparison.

  Whether you’re a marketing manager focused on ROI of campaigns, a web analyst focused on conversions or simply interested in learning more about web analytics, there’s something for you on this list.

  What is a web analytics tool ?

  Web analytics tools collect and analyse information about your website’s visitors, their behaviour and the technical performance of your site. A web analytics tool compiles, measures and analyses website data to give you the information you need to improve site performance, boost conversions and increase your ROI.

  What makes a web analytics tool good ?

  Before we get into tool specifics, let’s go over some of the core features you can expect from a web analytics tool.

  For a web analytics tool to be worth your time (and money), it needs to cover the basics. For example :

  • Visitor reports : The number of visitors, whether they were unique or repeat visitors, the source of traffic (where they found your website), device information (if they’re using a desktop or mobile device) and demographic information like geographic location

  • Behaviour reports : What your visitors did while on your site, conversion rates (e.g., if they signed up for or purchased something), the pages they entered and exited from, average session duration, total time spent on a page and bounce rates (if they left without interacting with anything)

  • Technical information : Page loading speed and event tracking — where users are clicking, what they’re downloading or sharing from your site, if they’re engaging with the media on it and how far down the page they’re scrolling

  • Marketing campaign information : Breakdowns of ad campaigns by provider, showing if ads resulted in traffic to your site and lead to an eventual sale or conversion

  • Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) information : Which keywords on which pages are driving traffic to your site, and what search engines are they coming from

  • Real-time data tracking : Visitor, behaviour and technical information available in real-time, or close to it — allowing you to address to issues as they occur

  • Data visualisation : Charts and graphs illustrating the above information in an easily-readable format — helping identify opportunities and providing valuable insights you can leverage to improve site performance, conversion rates and the amount of time visitors spend on a page

  • Custom reporting : Create custom reports detailing the desired metrics and time frame you’re interested in

  • Security : User access controls and management tools to limit who can see and interact with user data

  • Resources : Official user guides, technical documentation, troubleshooting materials, customer support and community forums

  

  Pros and Cons of Google Analytics 4

  Despite many users’ dissatisfaction, GA4 isn’t going away anytime soon. It’s still a powerful tool with all the standard features you’d expect. It’s the most popular choice for web analytics for a few other reasons, too, including :

  • It’s free to use
  • It’s easy to set up
  • It has a convenient mobile app
  • It has a wealth of user documentation and technical resources online
  • Its machine-learning capabilities help predict user behaviour and offer insights on how to grow your site
  • It integrates easily with other Google tools, like Google Search Console, Google Ads and Google Cloud

  That said, it comes with some serious drawbacks. Many users accustomed to UA have reported being unhappy with the differences between it and GA4. Their reasons range from changes to the user interface and bounce rate calculations, as well as Google’s switch from pageview-focused metrics to event-based ones. 

  Let’s take a look at some of the other cons :

  • Lack of privacy, as Google uses data from Google Analytics for advertising purposes.
  • Cookie consent banners can frustrate visitors, and with 40-60% of web visitors rejecting consent, relying on them can lead to inaccurate data and an incomplete view of your web traffic and campaign outcomes.
  • Can’t import data from UA to GA4 
  • Missing features like heatmaps and session recording
  • Google Analytics 360, the GA for enterprises, costs $150,000/year

  Now that you know GA4’s strengths and weaknesses, it’s time to explore other tools that can help fill in GA4’s gaps.

  Top 5 web analytics tools (that aren’t Google)

  Below is a list of popular web analytics tools that, unless otherwise stated, have all the features a good tool should have.

  Adobe Analytics

  

  Adobe is a trusted name in software, with tools that have shaped the technological landscape for decades, like Photoshop and Illustrator. With web design and UX tools Dreamweaver and XD, it makes sense that they’d offer a web analytics platform as well.

  Adobe Analytics provides not just web analytics but marketing analytics that tell you about customer acquisition and retention, ROI and ad campaign performance metrics. Its machine learning (ML) and AI-powered analytics predict future customer behaviour based on previously collected data.

  Key features : 

  • Multichannel data collection that covers computers, mobile devices and IoT devices
  • Adobe Sensei (AI/ML) for marketing attribution and anomaly detection
  • Tag management through Adobe Experience Platform Launch simplifies the tag creation and maintenance process to help you track how users interact with your site

  Pros :

  • User-friendly and simple to learn with a drag-and-drop interface
  • When integrated with other Adobe software, it becomes a powerful solution for enterprises
  • Saves your team a lot of time with the recommendations and insights automatically generated by Adobe’s AI/ML

  Cons :

  • No free version
  • Adobe Sensei and tag manager limited to premium version
  • Expensive, especially when combined with the company’s other software
  • Steep learning curve for both setup and use

  Mobile app : Yes

  Integrations : Integrates with Adobe Experience Manager Sites, the company’s CMS. Adobe Target, a CRO tool and part of the Adobe Marketing Cloud subscription, integrates with Analytics.

  Pricing : Available upon request

  Matomo

  

  Matomo is the leading open-source web analytics solution designed to help you make more informed decisions and enhance your customer experience while ensuring GDPR compliance and user privacy. With Matomo Cloud, your data is stored in Europe, while Matomo On-Premise allows you to host your data on your own servers.

  Matomo is used on over 1 million websites, in over 190 countries, and in over 50 languages. Additionally, Matomo is an all-in-one solution, with traditional web analytics (visits, acquisition, etc.) alongside behavioural analytics (heatmaps, session recordings and more), plus a tag manager. No more inefficiently jumping back and forth between tabs in a huge tech stack. It’s all in Matomo, for one consistent, seamless and efficient experience. 

  Key features : 

  • Heatmaps and session recording to display what users are clicking on and how individual users interacted with your site 
  • A/B testing to compare different versions of the same content and see which gets better results
  • Robust API that lets you get insights by connecting your data to other platforms, like data visualisation or business intelligence tools

  Pros : 

  • Open-source, reviewed by experts to ensure that it’s secure
  • Offers On-Premise or Cloud-hosted options
  • Fully compliant with GDPR, so you can be data-driven without worrying. 
  • Option to run without cookies, meaning in most countries you can use Matomo without annoying cookie consent banners and while getting more accurate data
  • You retain complete ownership of your data, with no third parties using it for advertising or unspecified “own purposes”

  Cons : 

  • On-Premise is free, but that means an additional cost for advanced features (A/B testing, heatmaps, etc.) that are included by default on Matomo Cloud
  • Matomo On-Premise requires servers and technical expertise to setup and manage

  Mobile app : Matomo offers a free mobile app (iOS and Android) so you can access your analytics on the go. 

  Integrations : Matomo integrates easily with many other tools and platforms, including WordPress, Looker Studio, Magento, Jira, Drupal, Joomla and Cloudflare.

  Pricing : 

  • Varies based on monthly hits
  • Matomo On-Premise : free
  • Matomo Cloud : starting at €19/month

  Mixpanel

  

  Mixpanel’s features are heavily geared toward e-commerce companies. From the moment a visitor lands on your website to the moment they enter their payment details and complete a transaction, Mixpanel tracks these events.

  Similar to GA4, Mixpanel is an event-focused analytics platform. While you can still track pageviews with Mixpanel, its main focus is on the specific actions users take that lead them to purchases. Putting your attention on this information allows you to find out which events on your site are going through the sales funnel.

  They’re currently developing a Warehouse Events feature to simplify the process of importing data lakes and data warehouses.

  Key features :

  • Custom alerts and anomaly detection
  • Boards, which allow you to share multiple reports and insights with your team in a range of visual styles 
  • Detailed segmentation reporting that lets you break down your data to the individual user, specific event or geographic level

  Pros :

  • Boards allow for emojis, gifs, images and videos to make collaboration fun
  • Powerful mobile analytics for iOS and Android apps
  • Free promotional credits for eligible startups 

  Cons :

  • Limited features in free plan
  • Best features limited to the Enterprise-tier subscription
  • Complicated set up
  • Steep learning curve

  Mobile app : No

  Integrations : Mixpanel has a load of integrations, including Figma, Google Cloud, Slack, HappyFox, Snowflake, Microsoft Azure, Optimizely, Mailchimp and Tenjin. They also have a WordPress plugin.

  Pricing : 

  • Starter : free plan available
  • Growth : $20/month
  • Enterprise $833/month

  HubSpot Marketing

  

  HubSpot is a customer relationship management (CRM) platform with marketing, sales, customer service, content management system (CMS) and operations tools. This greater ecosystem of HubSpot software allows you to practically run your entire business in one place.

  Even though HubSpot Marketing isn’t a dedicated web analytics tool, it provides comparable standard metrics as the other tools on this list, albeit without the more advanced analytical metrics they offer. If you’re already using HubSpot to host your website, it’s definitely worth consideration.

  Key features :

  • Customer Journey Analytics presents the steps your customers went through in the sales process, step-by-step, in a visual way
  • Dashboards for your reports, including both fully customisable options for power users and pre-made templates for new users

  Pros :

  • Integration with other HubSpot tools, like HubSpot CRM’s free live chat widget 
  • User-friendly interface with many features being drag-and-drop, like the report dashboard
  • 24/7 customer support

  Cons :

  • Can get expensive with upgrades and other HubSpot tool add ons
  • Not a dedicated web analytics tool, so it’s missing some of the features other tools have, like heatmaps
  • Not really worth it as a standalone tool
  • Some users report customer support is unhelpful

  Mobile app : Yes

  Integrations : The larger HubSpot CRM platform can connect with nearly 1,500 other apps through the HubSpot App Marketplace. These include Slack, Microsoft Teams, Salesforce, Make, WordPress, SurveyMonkey, Shopify, monday.com, Stripe, WooCommerce and hundreds of others.

  Pricing : 

  • Starter : $20/month ($18/month with annual plan) 
  • Professional : $890/month ($800/month with annual plan) 
  • Enterprise : $3,600/month ($43,200 billed annually)

  Kissmetrics

  

  Kissmetrics is a web analytics tool that is marketed toward SaaS and ecommerce companies. They label themselves as “person-based” because they combine event-based tracking with detailed user profiles of the visitors to your site, which allows you to gain insights into customer behaviour. 

  With user profiles, you can drill down to see how many times someone has visited your site, if they’ve purchased from you and the steps they took before completing a sale. This allows you to cater more to these users and drive growth.

  Key features : 

  • Person Profiles that give granular information about individual users and their activities on your site
  • Campaigns, an engagement messenger application, allows you to set up email automations that are triggered by specific events
  • Detailed reporting tools 

  Pros : 

  • No third-party cookies
  • No data sampling
  • APIs for Ruby on Rails, JavaScript, Python and PHP

  Cons : 

  • Difficult installation
  • Strongest reporting features only available in the most expensive plan
  • Reports can be slow to generate
  • Requires custom JavaScript code to tack single-page applications
  • Doesn’t track demographic data, bounce rate, exits, session length or time on page

  Mobile app : No

  Integrations : Kissmetrics integrates with HubSpot, Appcues, Slack, Mailchimp, Shopify, WooCommerce, Recurly and a dozen others. There is also a Kissmetrics WordPress plugin.

  Pricing : 

  • Silver : $299/month (small businesses)
  • Gold : $499/month (medium) 
  • Platinum : custom pricing (enterprises)

  Conclusion

  In this article, you learned about popular tools for web analytics to better inform you of your options. Despite all of GA4’s shortcomings, by complementing it with another web analytics tool, teams can gain a more comprehensive understanding of their website traffic and enhance their overall analytics capabilities.

  If you want an option that delivers powerful insights while keeping privacy, security and compliance at the forefront, you should try Matomo. 

  Try Matomo alongside Google Analytics now to see how it compares.

  Start your 21-day free trial now – no credit card required.

• Meta Receives a Record GDPR Fine from The Irish Data Protection Commission

  29 mai 2023, par Erin — GDPR

  The Irish Data Protection Commission (the DPC) issued a €1.2 billion fine to Meta on May, 22nd 2023 for violating the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). 

  The regulator ruled that Meta was unlawfully transferring European users’ data to its US-based servers and taking no sufficient measures for ensuring users’ privacy. 

  Meta must now suspend data transfer within five months and delete EU/EEA users’ personal data that was illegally transferred across the border. Or they risk facing another round of repercussions. 

  Meta continued to transfer personal user data to the USA following an earlier ruling of The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), which already address problematic EU-U.S. data flows. Meta continued those transfers on the basis of the updated Standard Contractual Clauses (“SCCs”), adopted by the European Commission in 2021. 

  The Irish regulator successfully proved that these arrangements had not sufficiently addressed the “fundamental rights and freedoms” of the European data subjects, outlined in the CJEU ruling. Meta was not doing enough to protect EU users’ data against possible surveillance and unconsented usage by US authorities or other authorised entities.

  Why European Regulators Are After The US Big Tech Firms ? 

  GDPR regulations have been a sore area of compliance for US-based big tech companies. 

  Effectively, they had to adopt a host of new measures for collecting user consent, ensuring compliant data storage and the right to request data removal for a substantial part of their user bases. 

  The wrinkle, however, is that companies like Google and Meta among others, don’t have separate data processing infrastructure for different markets. Instead, all the user data gets commingled on the companies’ servers, which are located in the US. 

  Data storage facilities’ location is an issue. In 2020, the CJEU made a historical ruling, called the invalidation of the Privacy Shield. Originally, international companies were allowed to transfer data between the EU and the US if they adhered to seven data protection principles. This arrangement was called the Privacy Shield. 

  However, the continuous investigation found that the Privacy Shield scheme was not GDPR compliant and therefore companies could no longer use it to justify cross-border data transfers.

  The invalidation of the Privacy Shield gave ground for further investigations of the big tech companies’ compliance statuses. 

  In March 2022, the Irish DPC issued the first €17 million fine to Meta for “insufficient technical and organisational measures to ensure information security of European users”. In September 2022, Meta was again hit with a €405 million fine for Instagram breaching GDPR principles. 

  2023 began with another series of rulings, with the DPC concluding that Meta had breaches of the GDPR relating to its Facebook service (€210 million fine) and breaches related to Instagram (€180 million fine). 

  Clearly, Meta already knew they weren’t doing enough for GDPR compliance and yet they refused to take privacy-focused action. 

  Is Google GDPR Compliant ?

  Google has a similar “track record” as Meta when it comes to ensuring full compliance with the GDPR. Although Google has said to provide users with more controls for managing their data privacy, the proposed solutions are just scratching the surface. 

  In the background, Google continues to leverage its ample reserves of user browsing, behavioural and device data in product development and advertising. 

  In 2022, the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) found that Google used web users’ information in its real-time bidding ad system without their knowledge or consent. The French data regulator (CNIL), in turn, fined Google for €150 million because of poor cookie consent banners the same year. 

  Google Analytics GDPR compliance status is, however, the bigger concern.

  Neither Google Univeral Analytics (UA) nor Google Analytics 4 are GDPR compliant, following the Privacy Shield framework invalidation in 2020. 

  Fines from individual regulators in Sweden, France, Austria, Italy, Denmark, Finland and Norway ruled that Google Analytics is non-GDPR compliant and is therefore illegal to use. 

  The regulatory rulings not just affect Google, but also GA users. Because the product is in breach of European privacy laws, people using it are complacent. Privacy groups like noyb, for example, are exercising their right to sue individual websites, using Google Analytics.

  How to Stay GDPR Compliant With Website Analytics 

  To avoid any potential risk exposure, selectively investigate each website analytics provider’s data storage and management practices. 

  Inquire about the company’s data storage locations among the first things. For example, Matomo Cloud keeps all the data in the EU, while Matomo On-Premise edition gives you the option to store data in any country of your choice. 

  Secondly, ask about their process for consent tracking and subsequent data analysis. Our website analytics product is fully GDPR compliant as we have first-party cookies enabled by default, offer a convenient option of tracking out-outs, provide a data removal mechanism and practice safe data storage. In fact, Matomo was approved by the French Data Protection Authority (CNIL) as one of the few web analytics apps that can be used to collect data without tracking consent. 

  Using an in-built GDPR Manager, Matomo users can implement the right set of controls for their market and their industry. For example, you can implement extra data or IP anonymization ; disable visitor logs and profiles. 

  Thanks to our privacy-by-design architecture and native controls, users can make their Matomo analytics compliant even with the strictest privacy laws like HIPAA, CCPA, LGPD and PECR. 

  Learn more about GDPR-friendly website analytics.

  Final Thoughts

  Since the GDPR came into effect in 2018, over 1,400 fines have been given to various companies in breach of the regulations. Meta and Google have been initially lax in response to European regulatory demands. But as new fines follow and the consumer pressure mounts, Big Tech companies are forced to take more proactive measures : add opt-outs for personalised ads and introduce an alternative mechanism to third-party cookies. 

  Companies, using non-GDPR-compliant tools risk finding themselves in the crossfire of consumer angst and regulatory criticism. To operate an ethical, compliant business consider privacy-focused alternatives to Google products, especially in the area of website analytics.