A German privacy regulator has told Facebook “Nein!” when it comes to collecting user information from WhatsApp. You might remember that this became an issue a little while ago, and now it looks like Facebook is starting to experience some blowback on this front. The Germans also said that Facebook has to delete all information it had already collected from the messaging service. Here’s some details via Bloomberg:
“This order protects the data of about 35 million WhatsApp users in Germany,” [Johannes] Caspar said. “It has to be their decision as to whether they want to connect their account with Facebook. Therefore, Facebook has to ask for their permission in advance. This has not happened.” The Hamburg authority claims jurisdiction over the company’s German activities because Facebook’s national unit is based in the area.
Facebook has said that it will appeal this decision and it’s clear why it would do that. This decision makes it difficult for Facebook to make money off its users, and it may lead to other countries imposing similar restrictions.
Let the games begin.
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This entry was posted on September 27, 2016 at 11:14 am and is filed under Commentary with tags Facebook. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
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Germany To Facebook: You Can’t Use WhatsApp Data
A German privacy regulator has told Facebook “Nein!” when it comes to collecting user information from WhatsApp. You might remember that this became an issue a little while ago, and now it looks like Facebook is starting to experience some blowback on this front. The Germans also said that Facebook has to delete all information it had already collected from the messaging service. Here’s some details via Bloomberg:
“This order protects the data of about 35 million WhatsApp users in Germany,” [Johannes] Caspar said. “It has to be their decision as to whether they want to connect their account with Facebook. Therefore, Facebook has to ask for their permission in advance. This has not happened.” The Hamburg authority claims jurisdiction over the company’s German activities because Facebook’s national unit is based in the area.
Facebook has said that it will appeal this decision and it’s clear why it would do that. This decision makes it difficult for Facebook to make money off its users, and it may lead to other countries imposing similar restrictions.
Let the games begin.
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This entry was posted on September 27, 2016 at 11:14 am and is filed under Commentary with tags Facebook. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.