The professional social network LinkedIn The American giant Microsoft was fined this Thursday with a fine of 310 million euros (about 335 million dollars) for having violated the European data protection regulation.
The Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC), acting on behalf of the EU, considered that “the consent obtained by LinkedIn” for the use of its users’ data “was not given freely, nor was it sufficiently informed or specific, nor unambiguous.”
LinkedIn must also adapt its processing of personal data to what is dictated by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
In a statement sent to AFP, LinkedIn stated that it “believes it complies with the GDPR”, but assured that it is “working to ensure that (its) advertising practices comply” with the Irish regulator’s decision.
In 2018, a French association that defends Internet users filed five collective complaints against LinkedIn, but also against Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon, accusing them of illegally exploiting the personal data of their users without their consent.
The complaints were initially lodged with the CNIL, the French data protection agency, before being transferred to the Irish regulator.
According to the Irish regulator, LinkedIn violated the data protection regulation regarding personalized advertising, which consists in using the information provided or observed by users to offer personalized advertisements.
The Irish regulator has imposed several fines on technology companies at a time when the EU is trying to impose a framework on privacy, competition, disinformation and taxation.
In September, fined Meta 91 million euros for not applying adequate security measures to protect user passwords and for taking too long to alert the regulator of the problem.
Ireland is home to the European headquarters of several technology giants such as Microsoft, Apple, Google and Meta, Facebook’s parent company.