According to a blog post by Matomo¹, the Austrian Data Protection Authority (DPA) has ruled that Austrian website providers using Google Analytics are in violation of the GDPR. This ruling stems from a decision made in 2020 by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) that stated that cloud services hosted in the US are incapable of complying with the GDPR and that data transfers to such services are illegal¹ ³.
It means specifically that the DPA has deemed the use of Google Analytics to be illegal, meaning Austrian businesses are left seeking EU or UK-based equivalent suppliers².
As of now, Google Analytics is still legal in the UK. However, according to iubenda, several European data protection authorities have found that Google Analytics’ processing of European user data could result in illegally transferring data outside of Europe. It’s best to keep an eye on this space as European countries are banning Google Analytics at an alarming rate.
Thinking it’s time to switch? Here are some European alternatives to Google Analytics that respect the GDPR:
- Kissmetrics: Named as the popular European alternative to Google Analytics. It provides insights into visitor behaviour, such as retention rates, conversion rates, and user activity after logging in. It also offers powerful segmentation tools so you can analyze your data by gender, age group, location, and page type.
- Matomo: One of the best privacy-friendly alternatives for Google Analytics. It’s also one of the most popular ones with over 1 million websites in over 190 countries using it–even world-known companies and organizations like the United Nations, NASA, and European Commission prefer Matomo.
- Piwik PRO: A privacy-friendly alternative to Google Analytics. It’s ideal for sectors that handle sensitive customer data like government, healthcare, or finance.
- Mouseflow: A GDPR-compliant alternative to Google Analytics.
(1) Google Analytics Now Illegal in Austria; Other EU Member States …. https://matomo.org/blog/2022/01/google-analytics-gdpr-violation
(2) Europe’s Move Against Google Analytics Is Just the Beginning. https://www.wired.com/story/google-analytics-europe-austria-privacy-shield
(3) Google Analytics Illegal In Austria: Will The UK Be Next? – Force24. https://force24.co.uk/blog/2022/01/google-analytics-illegal-in-austria-will-the-uk-be-next
About The Author: Matt
Matt is a passionate technology enthusiast who loves everything about the web, with a particular passion for helping Kent businesses. He's been tinkering with computers since he was young and has always been fascinated by the power and potential of the internet.
When he's not working on his latest web project, Matt loves to spend time outdoors, playing video games, and keeping up with the latest developments in the tech world. He's excited to continue pursuing his passion for web technology and helping Kent businesses to succeed in the online space.
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