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LinkedIn, the professional social network owned by Microsoft, is the latest company to receive a formal request for information (RFI) from the European Union. The commission, which oversees large platforms’ compliance with some of the risk management, transparency and algorithmic liability provisions of the Digital Services Act (DSA), the e-commerce rulebook, also controls advertising targeting by LinkedIn. Questions have been raised about the use of user data for this purpose.
Of particular concern is whether LinkedIn violates the DSA’s prohibitions on the use of sensitive data for advertising targeting by large platforms.
Sensitive data under EU law refers to categories of personal data such as health information, political, religious or philosophical opinions, racial or ethnic origin, sexual orientation, and trade union membership. Profiling to target advertising based on such data is prohibited by law.
The regulation also requires large platforms (also known as VLOPs) to provide users with basic information about the nature and origin of their ads. Ad archives should also be made publicly available and searchable, a further step aimed at promoting accountability around paid messaging on popular platforms.
In a press release announcing the RFI on Thursday, the European Commission said it would require “more detailed information on how their services comply with the ban on displaying advertising based on profiling using special categories of personal data.” I wrote that I was looking for information. It also flagged his LinkedIn requirement to provide ad targeting information to users.
LinkedIn has until April 5th to respond to the RFI.
When asked for a response to the commission’s action, a LinkedIn spokesperson responded via email:linkedin Compliant with the DSA, including provisions regarding ad targeting. We look forward to working with the Committee on this issue. ”
The RFI represents the early stages of a potential DSA enforcement proceeding, with the EU discovering issues that have led it to question how LinkedIn is complying with the ban on sensitive data in advertising. There have been indications that preliminary concerns leading to the outcome of starting a formal investigation have not yet been established. However, such steps may continue if you are not satisfied with the answer you get.
Compliance is a key issue as any confirmed violation of the DSA can result in fines of up to 6% of global annual turnover. The DSA also empowers the EU to impose fines for inaccurate, incomplete or misleading information in response to RFIs.
The commission said the information provided to LinkedIn was made following a complaint from civil society organization EDRi. global witnessGesellschaft für Freiheitsrechte, and February’s Bits of Freedom called for “effective enforcement of the DSA.”
LinkedIn is not the only platform gaining attention in the EU for its use of data for advertising. Earlier this month, Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, issued an RFI seeking details about how it complies with the DSA’s requirement that the use of people’s data in advertising requires explicit consent. received from the committee.
The EU has also fired a number of other RFIs against VLOPs since regulations started applying to them in August last year.
The commission said its enforcement prioritizes measures against illegal content/hate speech, child protection, election security, and market security.
The company today announced its first formal investigation into Alibaba-owned marketplace AliExpress, citing a long list of alleged violations. It is also conducting two public investigations into social media sites X and TikTok, raising a new set of concerns, including illegal content and risk management. Content moderation practices and transparency.
In addition, the European Commission today announced increased oversight of how tech giants are responding to risks associated with generative AI, such as political deepfakes, and will increase scrutiny over how tech giants are responding to risks associated with generative AI, such as political deepfakes. With this in mind, we sent out a large number of requests for information.
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