Privacy groups file complaint against Google parent company over Android’s compliance with Digital Markets Act

Five privacy advocacy groups have asked the European Commission to investigate Google’s parent company Alphabet for potential violations of the Digital Markets Act, alleging Android restricts users from disabling pre-installed apps and intimidates those who try.

Google’s parent company Alphabet is facing a new complaint from five privacy advocacy organizations over alleged breaches of the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA). The groups—European Digital Rights, Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE), Gesellschaft für Freiheitsrechte e.V., Homo Digitalis, and ARTICLE 19—have called on the European Commission to open an investigation into Alphabet.

The complaint alleges that Android’s core platform “deliberately hides from end users the possibility to even disable the pre-installed gatekeeper apps.” The groups further claim that users who do discover the option to disable these apps are intimidated by warning messages, including: “if you disable this app, Android and other apps may no longer function as intended.”

This complaint follows Alphabet’s latest DMA compliance report and a workshop with Commission representatives on 1 July.

The DMA, which regulates the gatekeeper power of the world’s largest digital companies, became applicable in May 2023. In September of that year, the EU executive designated six gatekeepers: Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, ByteDance, Meta, and Microsoft, with Booking.com added in 2024.

On 23 April, the Commission fined Apple €500 million and Meta €200 million for failing to comply with the DMA. Apple was found to prevent developers from directing consumers to alternative channels outside its ecosystem, while Meta’s “pays or consent” advertising model forced users to either consent to data use for targeted advertising or pay a subscription.

‍