The European Commission and the UK are launching separate investigations into Facebook citing antitrust concerns over the Facebook Marketplace and the company's use of classified advertisements on the platform. In particular, regulators are concerned that Facebook is unfairly using advertising data to distort competition. Speaking on the investigation, the European …
Read More »Activision is paying employees to harvest their health data
It’s fair to say that Activision Blizzard isn’t the world’s favourite company after its cost cutting measures resulted in mass layoffs and its investors claim to have been misled by Bungie’s split. Recent reports of the company offering to collect data from its employees isn’t going to help matters, but …
Read More »Internal emails reveal Facebook knew about Cambridge Analytica months earlier
Last year, Facebook was publicly embroiled in Cambridge Analytica’s data collection scandal, causing CEO Mark Zuckerberg to appear before a number of government officials to defend his company. It turns out that the narrative isn’t quite what Facebook claimed it was, as recently unearthed emails show that the social network …
Read More »Tech companies have been paying users for unprecedented mobile data access
Earlier this week, Facebook was revealed to be running a secret program that paid users between 13 and 35-years-old up to $20 per month to install an application that provided the company near-unrestricted access to their smartphone activity. The social network wasn’t alone in its efforts, as Google has also …
Read More »Oculus will adjust its Terms of Service and add a ‘privacy centre’ to comply with GDPR
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is coming into place fairly soon here in the EU, which means companies around the world are preparing changes to fall in line with the new laws. Facebook might be trying to skirt around it, but Oculus will be going in a different direction …
Read More »Facebook has delayed its camera equipped smart speaker due to data policy scrutiny
Last year, we first heard about Facebook's plans to compete with Amazon, Google and Apple in the ‘smart speaker' market. The speaker was apparently set to be revealed in May at a conference, but recently, Facebook has found itself in the middle of a major data usage and privacy scandal. …
Read More »Google promises to stop collecting Android location data after being caught
Yesterday, it came to light that Google had been tracking users of its Android operating systems regardless of whether or not location services had been turned off. The company has now firmly held its red hands high, stating that it will stop this data collection and find another way to …
Read More »Legal complaint claims Bose has been tracking and selling customer data without permission
It looks like Bose has found itself in some legal trouble following accusations that the company used an app to track and collect information on customers without permission. Using an app, Bose is said to have tracked the listening habits of its wireless headphone customers and then sold that data …
Read More »Microsoft to update Windows 10 privacy policy, will be more transparent with data collection
There have been privacy concerns surrounding Windows 10 ever since its launch, prompting complaints not just from users but from government watchdogs as well, particularly here in Europe. However, it looks like Microsoft is finally prepared to do something about it, starting off with an update to its privacy statement …
Read More »Privacy concerns force WhatsApp to suspend user data collection in EU
WhatsApp has gone ahead and put a stop to its user data collection activities in Europe after growing pressure from privacy watchdogs in multiple EU countries. The policy change means that the messaging app will no longer be relaying personal information, like phone numbers, over to Facebook though this may …
Read More »France takes a stand against Microsoft’s Windows 10 user tracking
Ever since the launch of Windows 10, plenty of people have had issues with Microsoft’s new policies when it comes to privacy and data collection. Now, it looks like France’s data protection authority also has a problem with it and has ordered Microsoft to “stop collecting excessive user data” within …
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