The French anti-trust regulator has fined Apple 150 million euros (£125m~) for what it says it an abuse of its dominant market position for its tracking permissions tool.

The French Competition Authority is issuing the fine to Apple over its App Tracking Transparency (ATT) tool which asks user’s permissions if an app can track their personal data for targeted advertising purposes.

Anyone familiar with EU regulation about permissions and online tracking would think that Apple’s tool would get a thumbs up from any data protection authority, but the tool has faced criticism from app developers.

The French regulator said that the way the tool was implemented “was neither necessary nor proportionate to Apple’s stated objective of protecting personal data.”

ATT will provide a pop-up to a user when they first open a newly downloaded app, presenting a universal message explaining app tracking and asking users for consent to track, or to “Ask app not to track.” Many apps already provide a consent pop up on their app, but Apple introduced this feature to create a “consistent” prompt about tracking for all developers.

The prompt is also the same for all of Apple’s own apps as well.

The French authority said that the tool created too many consent windows, making it difficult for users to navigate their iOS devices.

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The watchdog also raised concerns about the tool’s neutrality, as it could potentially penalise smaller publishers which rely on third-party data tracking for their revenue and success.

Apple has explained their disappointment in the ruling, saying that the tool was made to protect people’s privacy and offer more transparency about app tracking.

“That prompt is consistent for all developers, including Apple, and we have received strong support for this feature from consumers, privacy advocates, and data protection authorities around the world,” Apple said. “While we are disappointed with today’s decision, the French Competition Authority (FCA) has not required any specific changes to ATT.”