Amazon attacks EU privacy regulators, claims their aim was punishment

Amazon.com Inc. hit back at regulators who slapped it with a then-record European Union privacy fine of €746 million ($814 million), claiming their aim was punishment rather than protecting people’s data.

The ecommerce giant told a local court in Luxembourg — where the firm has its regional hub — that watchdogs went on the attack rather than seek an amicable solution and fired off unfounded accusations that the firm trampled on the privacy rights of customers.

Amazon lawyer Thomas Berger said the Luxembourg regulator’s approach left the company “without a chance to change its practices” before issuing the penalty under the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR, in 2021.