The public’s right to data privacy is once again in question, as Google stands accused of breaking EU law by sending users of its email service Gmail direct advertising messages.

Activist group, None of Your Business (NYOB), has submitted its complaint to French regulators.

The French data regulator CNIL has been among the most active in Europe in holding Google and Facebook accountable.

The group has raised question over Google allowing clearly marked ads to appear in users’ Gmail inboxes.

But this is only allowed if users agree to this type of marketing.

NYOB lawyer, Romain Robert says that spam is commercial emails sent without consent, and this is illegal even if its the host site sending the ads.

The French regulator has already fined Google and Meta, Facebook’s parent company, millions of euros for failing to provide users with an easy opt-out for cookies, which are files that track users around the web.

The two firms also face scrutiny over their practice of sending the personal data of EU residents to servers in the United States.