Italy fines Apple $115m over app tracking privacy rules

Italy’s competition authority, the Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato (AGCM), has fined U.S. tech giant Apple €98 million ($115 million), accusing the company of abusing its dominant position in the mobile app market through restrictive privacy rules.

The AGCM said Apple violated regulations affecting third-party developers on its App Store, where it “holds a super-dominant position.”

The investigation found that Apple’s App Tracking Transparency (ATT) rules, introduced in 2021, were imposed unilaterally and limited the commercial interests of app developers. ATT requires apps to obtain user consent through a pop-up before tracking activity across other apps and websites. Apps denied consent lose access to data that allows targeted advertising.

Critics have long argued that ATT gives Apple a competitive advantage by promoting its own advertising services while restricting rivals’ access to user data.

This is not Apple’s first penalty over ATT. Earlier this year, French antitrust authorities fined the company €150 million over the same feature, and regulators across Europe are investigating similar practices.

The AGCM said its action underscores ongoing scrutiny of tech giants using privacy rules to gain commercial advantage, signaling that regulators are closely watching how global platforms enforce app policies.