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This article is pretty vague. What does it even mean to ban Facebook "from using data from WhatsApp users"? Facebook "uses data from WhatsApp users" to support

by thamer 5y ago

This article is pretty vague. What does it even mean to ban Facebook "from using data from WhatsApp users"? Facebook "uses data from WhatsApp users" to support basic features like authentication, is that banned now? What about sending a WhatsApp message to a contact, doesn't that "use data from WhatsApp users"? Facebook has to look up some internal user ID (user data), then route the message to their devices, probably by device ID (also user data). How do you do that if using data banned? I suspect there's more to it but this particular article isn't telling the story in a particularly clear or helpful manner. Hopefully the actual injunction is not as vague.

Barrin92 5y ago
From Spiegel: "Am Dienstag gab Caspars Behörde bekannt, dass sie eine Anordnung erlassen hat, die es Facebook – also der Mutterfirma von WhatsApp – verbietet, personenbezogene Daten von WhatsApp zu »eigenen Zwecken« zu verarbeiten. Gemeint ist damit, dass Facebook jene Daten zum Beispiel nicht für sein Anzeigengeschäft nutzen darf. " Roughly translated as: Whatsapp is not allowed to share personal user data with Facebook for Facebooks own use, for example Facebook cannot collect data for the purpose of advertisement (and my guess is any other form of monetization). Facebook says further down in the article they currently don't share data between the services for those purposes. I also think you're confused about the scope. It's no problem that WhatsApp uses its own userdata, the problem is WhatsApp sharing data with Facebook, which is a distinct service. https://www.spiegel.de/netzwelt/apps/whatsapp-hamburger-datenschuetzer-erlaesst-anordnung-gegen-facebook-a-e5504670-4907-4352-a7dd-2370f39b6d92 https://www.spiegel.de/netzwelt/apps/whatsapp-hamburger-date...
- thamer 5y ago
  Ah, that makes sense. Thanks for the details!
- trompetenaccoun 5y ago
  Still super vague. What exactly will be mandated? By what metric are they supposed to identify "German" users? And what if those German users talk to "non-German users"? Will those chats and the corresponding meta-data also be protected? Our private data leaks all over the place, EU regulation in that regard is like a game of whac-a-mole. In a globalized online world this will only work if there's international legislation.

by thamer 5y ago

Barrin92 5y ago

From Spiegel: "Am Dienstag gab Caspars Behörde bekannt, dass sie eine Anordnung erlassen hat, die es Facebook – also der Mutterfirma von WhatsApp – verbietet, personenbezogene Daten von WhatsApp zu »eigenen Zwecken« zu verarbeiten. Gemeint ist damit, dass Facebook jene Daten zum Beispiel nicht für sein Anzeigengeschäft nutzen darf. " Roughly translated as: Whatsapp is not allowed to share personal user data with Facebook for Facebooks own use, for example Facebook cannot collect data for the purpose of advertisement (and my guess is any other form of monetization). Facebook says further down in the article they currently don't share data between the services for those purposes. I also think you're confused about the scope. It's no problem that WhatsApp uses its own userdata, the problem is WhatsApp sharing data with Facebook, which is a distinct service. https://www.spiegel.de/netzwelt/apps/whatsapp-hamburger-datenschuetzer-erlaesst-anordnung-gegen-facebook-a-e5504670-4907-4352-a7dd-2370f39b6d92 https://www.spiegel.de/netzwelt/apps/whatsapp-hamburger-date...

thamer 5y ago
Ah, that makes sense. Thanks for the details!
trompetenaccoun 5y ago
Still super vague. What exactly will be mandated? By what metric are they supposed to identify "German" users? And what if those German users talk to "non-German users"? Will those chats and the corresponding meta-data also be protected? Our private data leaks all over the place, EU regulation in that regard is like a game of whac-a-mole. In a globalized online world this will only work if there's international legislation.