EU Data Watchdogs Ramp Up New Privacy Powers With Bigger Fines

European Union privacy regulators are gearing up to make full use of expanded powers under new data protection rules, according to a report that found 114 million euros ($126.5 million) in fines have been levied so far for data violations, with even higher penalties expected.

Regulators in France, Germany and Austria levied the biggest fines so far, while the Netherlands, Germany and the U.K. topped the list for the number of data breaches notified to their authorities, the survey by law firm DLA Piper found. France’s data protection commission, the CNIL, last January slapped Google with a 50 million-euro fine ...