Google warns EU's plans to weaken its monopoly could expose user data

Google is warning that proposed EU regulations (the Digital Markets Act, or DMA) forcing it to open up its search and ad ecosystem to competitors could compromise user privacy and security. The DMA is a landmark EU law that designates large tech platforms as "gatekeepers" and requires them to allow third-party interoperability, give users more choice, and stop self-preferencing their own services. Google argues that loosening its control over data and search rankings would make it harder to filter spam, fraud, and malware, and could expose users' personal information to untrusted actors. Critics see this as a familiar lobbying tactic: big tech companies often invoke "privacy" and "security" to resist regulations that would reduce their market dominance. The EU has been steadily pushing back against US tech monopolies, with similar battles playing out over Apple's App Store and Meta's data practices.