World News Europol told to delete personal data not linked to any crime European Data Protection Supervisor, the EU personal data watchdog, said the police agency has continually stored "large volumes" of data regardless of whether it was related to a crime or not. 10/01/2022
The Cube Facial recognition company breaks EU data privacy rules, says France Clearview has amassed a database of billions of people's photos, but France says the data has been collected without citizens' consent. 16/12/2021
Norway Grindr fined over €6 million by Norway for breaking data privacy rules The gay-dating app was found to have shared users' personal data with third-party advertisers without their permission. 15/12/2021
Tech News WhatsApp updates privacy policy after record €225 million fine Users of the messaging app will be notified of the changes but won't have to take any action, the company said. 22/11/2021
Tech News Facebook says it will stop using facial recognition The company said it was safer to limit facial recognition software amid ethical concerns and lawsuits over its use. 03/11/2021
Tech News Italy's data authority seeks assurances over Facebook smart glasses The Italian watchdog said it wanted to be informed on measures Facebook has put in place to protect people occasionally filmed. 11/09/2021
Tech News Facebook unveils its Ray Ban smart glasses amid concerns over privacy You can listen to music, take photos and videos and make calls with them but activists have already flagged concerns over privacy. 10/09/2021
Tech News Twitter tests 'soft block' feature to subtly remove unwanted followers The new feature comes after an anti-harassment "safety mode" was announced earlier this month. 08/09/2021
Turkey Turkey fines WhatsApp €197,000 over controversial privacy update The Turkish data protection authority said that WhatsApp no longer offered users "free will". 03/09/2021
Tech News Apple's own staff concerned about plans for anti-child abuse scanning According to sources within the company, staff have been taking to Slack to voice their concerns over customers' privacy. 13/08/2021
Tech News Apple defends new anti-child abuse measures after backlash Critics penned an open letter, which was signed by 5,000 people and organisations, raising concerns over privacy. 10/08/2021
Tech News Facebook shuts down academics researching fake news adverts A project tracking fake news in Facebook adverts has been put on hold after the social network deleted researchers' accounts. 09/08/2021
Tech News Dutch data protection authority fines TikTok over privacy The Netherlands’ Data Protection Authority has fined TikTok €750,000 for not offering an understandable privacy statement for users in Dutch. 22/07/2021
Tech News Pegasus spyware scandal: What we know so far An international group of journalists made explosive allegations about widespread government spying on mobile phones. Here's what they say. 20/07/2021
Tech News WhatsApp goes phoneless, Microsoft gatecrashes World Emoji Day party What you need to know in tech this week: WhatsApp pilots multi-device access and Microsoft's paperclip symbol gatecrashes World Emoji Day party. 17/07/2021
Tech News WhatsApp faces EU consumer complaints over privacy changes A European consumer organisation says WhatsApp is unfairly pressuring users to accept its new privacy policy. 12/07/2021
Belgium Big tech companies exposed to EU privacy cases after court decision Facebook, Google, Twitter, and others can be challenged by watchdogs in any EU member state, not just its lead regulator in Ireland, the bloc’s top court has ruled. 15/06/2021
France Ikea France fined €1 million for spying on staff and some customers The French subsidiary of the home furnishings giant Ikea was found guilty of spying on union representatives, employees and some unhappy customers in the country. 15/06/2021
United Kingdom UK surveillance breached human rights laws, top European court rules The case upheld a 2018 ruling by the lower chamber of the European Court of Human Rights. 28/05/2021
Tech News European privacy groups challenge facial scan firm Clearview Four groups say Clearview stockpiled biometric data on more than 3 billion people without their knowledge or permission by “scraping" their images from websites. 27/05/2021