LONDON (AP) — The European Union’s move on Tuesday to investigate Google over alleged antitrust behavior in the digital ad tech sector is the bloc’s latest crackdown on U.S. tech giants. Here’s a look at enforcement actions taken by the EU’s competition commissioner, Margrethe Vestager, in recent years, as well as actions by U.S. antitrust regulators and states.

GOOGLE

June 2021: The EU commission opens a formal investigation into whether Google stifles competition in the digital ad technology market by favoring its own ad services for buying display ads at the expense of rival services.

December 2020: Google’s acquisition of fitness gadget maker Fitbit for $2.1 billion is cleared by the EU Commission after it promised to restrict user data and ensure Android phones work with other wearable devices for at least 10 years. Human rights and consumer groups had called on authorities to block the deal over privacy and antitrust concerns.

October 2020: The U.S. Justice Department and about a dozen states file a groundbreaking antitrust suit against Google, accusing the company of abusing its dominance in online search and advertising.

2019: EU Commission fines Google 1.49 billion euros (now $1.8 billion) for abusing its dominant position as a broker for online search ads, including imposing anticompetitive contracts on third-party websites such as newspapers and blogs that prevent rival search sites from placing their own search ads on these sites.

2018: EU Commission fines Google 4.34 billion euros for forcing smartphone makers that use its Android operating system to install Google search and browser apps. In response, Google gives European Android users a choice of browsers and search apps.

2017: EU commission fines Google 2.42 billion euros for unfairly favoring its own online shopping recommendations in its search results and demanded it changes the way it provides search results in Europe. Google is appealing all three cases.

AMAZON

November 2020: The EU Commission files charges against Amazon.com accusing it of using internal data from independent merchants on its platform to unfairly compete against them with its own products. The commission also opens a second investigation into whether the e-commerce giant gives preference to some products and sellers that use its logistics and delivery systems.

APPLE

April 2021: The EU Commission charges Apple with violating the bloc’s competition rules in the music streaming market by imposing unfair rules for rivals to its Apple Music service in its App Store. Apple’s practice of forcing app developers selling digital content to use its in-house payment system charging a 30% commission and its rule forbidding app makers from telling users about cheaper ways to pay ends up raising costs for consumers and limiting their choices, the commission said. Apple has until mid-July to respond to the commission.

June 2020: EU Commission opens an investigation into Apple’s payment platform over concerns its practices distort competition by limiting choice and innovation and keeping prices high. It also opens another investigation into the App Store that eventually results in the music streaming charges.

FACEBOOK

June 2021: The EU Commission starts a formal investigation of Facebook’s use of data in the classified advertising market, while the U.K.’s competition watchdog opens a parallel investigation. Vestager says regulators are looking into whether the “vast troves of data” that Facebook collects on users and their interests gives it an “undue competitive advantage” in the online classified ads sector. The commission is looking specifically at the possibility that Facebook collects data on what users are interested in based on how rival classified ad sites are advertising their services to Facebook users, and whether the company uses that data to tailor its own classified offering, Marketplace, to outcompete rivals.

December 2020: The U.S. Federal Trade Commission, joined by nearly every U.S. state, brings a big antitrust suit against Facebook, accusing it of abusing its market power in social networking to crush smaller competitors. The suit seeks remedies that could include a forced spinoff of its popular Instagram and WhatsApp messaging services.

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the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) transitioned to eSOPH, the industry-leading background investigation software system by Miller Mendel. eSOPH is specifically designed for law enforcement background investigations. The CDCR evaluated at least three other software systems before ultimately selecting eSOPH. By implementing eSOPH, CDCR will reduce their background investigation time by approximately 50% and gain access to tools and other cost-saving efficiencies.

The CDCR intends to process approximately 7,000 background investigations within the first 12-months. The CDCR will also be utilizing the integrated social media screening service, Experian credit report service, and the eSOPH smart fax service. The advanced smart fax service allows investigators to fax reference/local checks with the click of a button, and facilitates the automatic routing of received faxes directly into the correct applicant file, requiring no manual uploading by the background investigator.

eSOPH, which stands for electronic Statement of Personal History, has been used by city and tribal police departments, county sheriff’s offices and state police agencies across the nation to conduct over 70,000 pre-employment public safety background investigations. Agencies using eSOPH report time savings of up to 60 percent per background investigation. Those using the system also report a significant reduction in costly administrative resources such as paper, ink, postage, and filing space. By transitioning to eSOPH, the CDCR joins several other California agencies on the system, including the California Highway Patrol, Riverside County Sheriff’s Department, San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office, Ventura County Sheriff’s Office, Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office, Santa Ana Police Department, Santa Monica Police Department, and several District Attorney’s offices and other agencies.

ABOUT THE CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS AND REHABILITATION

The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) is the state agency in California responsible for the state prison and parole system. It was formed in 1885 and is headquartered in Sacramento, California. The CDCR is organized into six divisions: Division of Adult Institutions; Division of Adult Parole Operations; Division of Health Care Services; Facility Planning, Construction and Management; Division of Juvenile Justice; and the Division of Rehabilitative Programs. The CDCR employs over 66,800 sworn peace officers and non-sworn support personnel.

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