48 votes

No Instagram Threads app in the EU: Ireland's Data Protection Commission says Meta's new Twitter rival won't be launched there

Posted by ourari
Tags: privacy, social media, facebook, meta, threads, data protection, european union, ireland, data protection commission, capitalism.surveillance, twitter, instagram, data protection authority, gdpr, author.adrian weckler, source.independent, short read
https://www.independent.ie/business/technology/no-instagram-threads-app-in-the-eu-irish-dpc-says-metas-new-twitter-rival-wont-be-launched-here/a1927220337.html

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Published
Jul 4 2023
Word count
353 words

4 comments

  1. ourari
    Link
    First few paragraphs as summary, unedited: Related discussion about Meta's Instagram Threads here: https://tildes.net/~tech/17i0/meta_is_launching_threads_an_app_to_rival_twitter

    First few paragraphs as summary, unedited:

    Meta will not launch its new Twitter rival, Threads, in Ireland or the EU for the foreseeable future.

    It is being released in the US and the UK on Thursday of this week as an alternative to Twitter.

    A spokesperson for Ireland’s Data Protection Commission (DPC) said that the regulator had been in contact about the new service and that it would not be rolled out in the EU “at this point”.

    The new Threads platform is designed to import data from Instagram, including behavioural and advertising information.

    In its US format, the platform tells users that it will collect a wide variety of data from users, including health, financial information, browsing histories, location, purchases, contacts, search history and sensitive information.

    In the EU, the Irish regulator has prevented Meta from launching advertising services on Whatsapp that uses data from Facebook or Instagram. The tech giant is allowed to mingle the two data streams in the US, which has weaker privacy laws.

    Related discussion about Meta's Instagram Threads here: https://tildes.net/~tech/17i0/meta_is_launching_threads_an_app_to_rival_twitter

    26 votes
  2. Minithra
    Link
    Well that's good then. Yay for privacy laws

    Well that's good then. Yay for privacy laws

    20 votes
  3. Penumbra
    Link
    I always envy how ahead of the game the EU is when it comes to privacy and tech legislation.

    I always envy how ahead of the game the EU is when it comes to privacy and tech legislation.

    7 votes
  4. A1sound
    Link
    I miss being in the EU so bad.

    I miss being in the EU so bad.

    6 votes