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Apple has been slapped with a €10 million penalty by Italy’s antitrust watchdog over its deceptive claims that its iPhones are waterproof.

On Monday, the Italian Competition Authority or Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato (AGCM) said it is penalizing Apple for engaging in “two distinct unfair commercial practices.

The Italian Competition Authority is concerned that Apple is disseminating deceptive advertisements regarding its iPhones being water-resistant.

Apple promoted that the iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max were water-resistant when submerged to a depth of one meter to four-meter for up to 30 minutes depending on the model.

However, the tech giant failed to clarify that such capability is only true under specific conditions such as during laboratory tests in which the water used is static and pure, according to the Italian Competition Authority

In addition, the regulator noted that Apple deceived consumers based on its disclaimer that its iPhones are not covered for damaged caused by liquids.

The Italian Competition Authority stated that “the contextual indication of the disclaimer "The guarantee does not cover damage caused by liquids", given the emphatic advertising boast of water resistance, was deemed suitable to deceive consumers by not clarifying which type of guarantee it referred to (conventional guarantee or legal guarantee), nor was it deemed capable of adequately contextualizing the conditions and limitations of the assertive claims of water resistance.”

Furthermore, the regulator alleged that Apple refused to provide warranty support to consumers when their iPhones were damaged by water. Such refusal is a violation of consumers’ rights under the Consumer Code.

Apple can appeal the penalty imposed by the Italian Competition Authority within 60 days upon receiving its notice.

Two years ago, the regulator hit Apple and Samsung with an approximately $15 million penalty for forcing updates on consumers’ phones. The updates slowed their devices.

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