Google Inc. has agreed to pay $22.5 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges for misleading users about its tracking activities on Apple Inc.’s Safari browser. Federal Trade Commission’s penalty  is the largest FTC penalty for violating a commission order so far.

Google was allegedly  using a special code to bypass the settings and install cookies on users’ computers even when such actions were supposed to be blocked by the browser.

“The record setting penalty in this matter sends a clear message to all companies under an FTC privacy order,” said Jon Leibowitz, Chairman of the FTC.  “No matter how big or small, all companies must abide by FTC orders against them and keep their privacy promises to consumers, or they will end up paying many times what it would have cost to comply in the first place.”