Cookie Consent Fines & Enforcement Actions
Browse European DPA enforcement actions targeting cookie consent and ePrivacy violations. Filter fines, warnings, and orders by country, violation type, and fine amount.
Selected coverage: Europe. Only published cases are included.
26 results · Showing 1–25
DPA case 521.14877.15
No Reject Button · Misleading Banner Messaging +1
Court case 4 U 353/24
Court case 3 U 31/25
Unabhängiges Landeszentrum für Datenschutz Schleswig-Holstein
Third-Party Cookies Without Consent
Court case 6 U 81/23
Third-Party Cookies Without Consent
Meta Platforms Inc.
Court case 10 A 5385/22
Reject Harder Than Accept · Third-Party Cookies Without Consent
Court case 6 C 3.23
Court case 1 A 217/22 MD
Court case 9 O 173/24
Microsoft Corporation
Cookies Placed Before Consent · Third-Party Cookies Without Consent
Court case 93 O 167/20
Third-Party Cookies Without Consent · Unclear Cookie Information
A Pakistani national, the plaintiff
WetterOnline Meteorologische Services GmbH
No Reject Button
Pre-ticked Consent Boxes
Magdeburg Administrative Court
Verbraucherzentrale NRW e.V., Beratungsstelle Köln
Misleading Banner Messaging
Städtische Werke Lauf a.d. Pegnitz GmbH
Court case 10 O 14/21
RheinMain University of Applied Sciences
Claimant: Bundesverband der Verbraucherzentralen und Verbraucherverbände - Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband e.V. (vzbv)
Pre-ticked Consent Boxes · Reject Harder Than Accept +2
Bundesverband der Verbraucherzentralen und Verbraucherverbände – Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband e. V.
Pre-ticked Consent Boxes
Data Subject versus Social Media Platform Operator
Third-Party Cookies Without Consent
Telekom Deutschland GmbH
Third-Party Cookies Without Consent
Court case 2 C 133/21
Frequently Asked Questions About Cookie Enforcement
Q:What are the most common cookie consent violations in Europe?
The most common violations include setting cookies before obtaining user consent, using pre-ticked consent boxes, lacking a clear reject button on cookie banners, making it harder to refuse cookies than to accept them, and failing to provide adequate information about cookie purposes. The French CNIL and Italian Garante have been particularly active in enforcing these requirements.
Q:Which European countries issue the most cookie consent fines?
France (CNIL), Italy (Garante), and Spain (AEPD) consistently lead in cookie consent enforcement. France has issued some of the largest fines, including multi-million euro penalties against major tech companies for cookie consent violations under both GDPR and the ePrivacy Directive.
Q:What is the average cookie consent fine in Europe?
Cookie consent fines vary enormously, from a few thousand euros for small businesses to hundreds of millions for large tech companies. The median fine for cookie-specific violations tends to be lower than general GDPR fines, but landmark cases like CNIL's fines against Google and Amazon have reached EUR 150 million and EUR 35 million respectively.
Q:What laws govern cookie consent in Europe?
Cookie consent in Europe is governed primarily by the ePrivacy Directive (2002/58/EC, as amended by 2009/136/EC), often called the 'Cookie Directive', and the GDPR (Regulation 2016/679). Article 5(3) of the ePrivacy Directive requires prior consent for storing cookies, while GDPR Articles 6 and 7 define lawful consent requirements. National implementations vary by country.
Browse case links on this page
Cookie Consent Enforcement Actions (26 total)
- DPA case 521.14877.15 (Germany) – complaint upheld – Sept 2023 | No Reject Button, Misleading Banner Messaging, Cannot Withdraw Cookie Consent
- Court case 4 U 353/24 (Germany) – court ruling – Apr 2026
- Court case 3 U 31/25 (Germany) – court ruling – Mar 2026
- Unabhängiges Landeszentrum für Datenschutz Schleswig-Holstein (Germany) – cjeu ruling – Jun 2018 | Third-Party Cookies Without Consent
- Court case 6 U 81/23 (Germany) – court ruling – Dec 2025 | Third-Party Cookies Without Consent
- Meta Platforms Inc. (Germany) – court ruling – Jul 2025
- Court case 10 A 5385/22 (Germany) – court ruling – Mar 2025 | Reject Harder Than Accept, Third-Party Cookies Without Consent
- Court case 6 C 3.23 (Germany) – court ruling – Jan 2025
- Court case 1 A 217/22 MD (Germany) – court ruling – Mar 2024
- Court case 9 O 173/24 (Germany) – court ruling – Jul 2024
- Microsoft Corporation (Germany) – court ruling – Jun 2024 | Cookies Placed Before Consent, Third-Party Cookies Without Consent
- Court case 93 O 167/20 (Germany) – court ruling – Jun 2023 | Third-Party Cookies Without Consent, Unclear Cookie Information
- A Pakistani national, the plaintiff (Germany) – court ruling – Dec 2023
- WetterOnline Meteorologische Services GmbH (Germany) – court ruling – Jan 2024 | No Reject Button
- LinkedIn (Germany) – court ruling – Aug 2023 | Pre-ticked Consent Boxes
- Magdeburg Administrative Court (Germany) – court ruling – Jun 2023
- Verbraucherzentrale NRW e.V., Beratungsstelle Köln (Germany) – court ruling – Mar 2023 | Misleading Banner Messaging
- Städtische Werke Lauf a.d. Pegnitz GmbH (Germany) – court ruling – Jan 2022
- Court case 10 O 14/21 (Germany) – court ruling – Jan 2023
- RheinMain University of Applied Sciences (Germany) – court ruling – Dec 2021
- Claimant: Bundesverband der Verbraucherzentralen und Verbraucherverbände - Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband e.V. (vzbv) (Germany) – court ruling – Sept 2020 | Pre-ticked Consent Boxes, Reject Harder Than Accept, Third-Party Cookies Without Consent, Unclear Cookie Information
- Bundesverband der Verbraucherzentralen und Verbraucherverbände – Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband e. V. (Germany) – court ruling – May 2020 | Pre-ticked Consent Boxes
- Data Subject versus Social Media Platform Operator (Germany) – court ruling – Jul 2025 | Third-Party Cookies Without Consent
- Telekom Deutschland GmbH (Germany) – court ruling – Nov 2023 | Third-Party Cookies Without Consent
- Court case 2 C 133/21 (Germany) – court ruling – Sept 2021