South Korean authorities said on Wednesday that they have fined Google and Meta ~$71.8 million, or 100 billion KRW, after discovering that they had breached the country's privacy law.

The watchdog said in its statement that Google and Meta did not receive legitimate consent in the process of collecting information from users who visit their websites and use other websites as well as apps for customized advertisements.

Google had failed to let its users know how their other companies' behavioral information would be collected and used upon signing up for the service and defaulted their preference choice to "agree," where more options were available on a setting screen, authorities in the country stated in a press release. Meta did not detail legally required information consumers need to be aware of and failed to seek users' consent when the company collected and used behavior information to deliver personal ads for the registration process of users, a Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC) spokesperson pointed out.

The PIPC ordered the companies to rectify the violations and issued fines of 69.2 billion KRW (~$50 million) against Google and 30.8 billion KRW (~$22 million) against Meta.
The watchdog said this is the biggest penalty in South Korea for violating personal information protection laws and the country's first sanction pertaining to the collection and use of behavioral information on online customized advertising platforms.

While we respect the PIPC's decision, we are confident that we work with our clients in a legally compliant way that meets the processes required by local regulations," a Meta spokesperson told TechCrunch. "As such, we do not agree with the commission's decision and will be open to all options, including seeking a ruling from the court.

Over the past few years, overseas watchdogs have fined Google and Meta for not complying with data protection regulations. In 2019, the French data protection watchdog, CNIL, issued its first General Data Protection Regulation fine of $57 million for transparency and consent violations. While Facebook-owned WhatsApp was fined $267 million for breaching GDPR's transparency principle last year, Germany's Federal Cartel Office has also ordered a limit on Meta's data gathering on users from third-party websites without their permission. That order remains under legal challenge in the EU.

"We disagree with the PIPC's conclusions and will review the full written decision when it is shared with us," a Google spokesperson said. "We have always shown our commitment to making ongoing updates that give users control and transparency while providing the most helpful products possible. We remain committed to engaging with the PIPC to protect the privacy of South Korean users."