U.K. Blocks WhatsApp From Transferring Data to Facebook
U.K. privacy officials have blocked WhatApp from transferring personal data to Facebook until the company complies with the GDPR, the new European privacy law. The Information Commissioner's Office found that WhatsApp's proposed data transfer would have violated the U.K. Data Protection Act. "People have a right to have their personal data kept safe," explained Commissioner Elizabeth Denham in a blog post. EPIC has twice urged the FTC to block WhatsApp's transfer of personal data to Facebook, but the FTC has failed to act. The FTC approved Facebook's acquisition of WhatsApp in 2014 after both companies assured the Commission and the public that they would protect users' privacy, but in 2016 WhatsApp announced that it would begin transferring the names and phone numbers of its users to Facebook. France blocked the data transfer and the EU fined Facebook $122 million for misleading European authorities about the data transfer.
March 14, 2018| Share:
