France demands that Google post badge of shame on its pages

Officials in France will force Google to display a notice on its French home page of a recent privacy court ruling against the company.

The French data-protection authority Commission nationale de l'informatique et des libertés (CNIL) said on Friday that the Conseil d’Etat – the administrative court – had denied Google's appeal of a January decision which required the company to post a notice on its Google.fr page of a fine levied against Google for violating data privacy laws.

The CNIL issued the original decision earlier this year alongside a ruling that Google would need to pay a fine after it failed to comply with rules surrounding the handling of data and public notification.

Specifically, Google is said to have failed to adequately explain to the French public how it handled and processed users' personal information. The company had argued against the ruling and the regulations.

While the fine itself is a miniscule €150,000, Google had objected to the CNIL's order that the company post the notification to its homepage.

"The company had requested the Conseil d’Etat (the French High Administrative Court) to suspend this publication order. In a ruling dated 7 February 2014, the judge rejected this request," the CNIL said.

"Google must publish this communiqué for a period of 48 hours in accordance with the modalities set by the Sanctions Committee."

Meanwhile, Google said that it would continue to appeal the decision.

"We've engaged fully with the CNIL throughout this process to explain our privacy policy and how it allows us to create simpler, more effective services," the company said in a statement passed to Le Reg.

"We will comply with the order to post the notice, but we'll also continue with our appeal before the Conseil d'Etat." ®