YouTube’s ad blocking crackdown is facing a new challenge: privacy laws | Privacy advocates argue YouTube’s ad blocker restrictions violate the European Union’s online privacy laws.::YouTube is launching a “global effort” to crack down on ad blockers, but some privacy advocates in the European Union argue that it’s illegal.
This is the best summary I could come up with:
As YouTube tightens its restrictions on ad blockers, privacy advocates in the European Union are betting that government regulations can put a stop to the crackdown.
One privacy expert, Alexander Hanff, filed a complaint in October with the Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC).
Hanff argues that YouTube’s ad blocker detection system is a violation of privacy — a charge Google denies — and illegal under EU law.
The European Commission seemed to reverse its stance in a proposed reform of its privacy law in 2017, stating that website providers should be able to check whether a user is using an ad blocker without their approval.
Patrick Breyer, a German digital rights advocate and member of the European Parliament, writes on Mastodon that “YouTube wants to force us into surveillance advertising and tracking with an anti-adblock wall.” Breyer says he is also asking the European Commission about the legality of ad blocker detection systems under the ePrivacy Directive.
It’s a bit too early to tell how the commission will respond to Hanff’s challenge, but the outcome likely won’t result in any changes to the existing system for those of us in the US.
The original article contains 827 words, the summary contains 192 words. Saved 77%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
One privacy expert, Alexander Hanff, filed a complaint…
I bet he always locked his bedroom door room as a teenager
Wouldn’t Netflix’s password sharing fall under the same law then?
They use user information like connected wifi and position data to determine if a device is used away from the defined “home”.
No.
Netflix logging your IP is the equivalent of taking a photo of someone in public. Not ideal if you’re into privacy, but it’s a public place, so it’s your problem. YouTube’s Adblock detection is equivalent to patting them down to see if they have a weapon and requiring their ID. The software actively looks for changes, using technology that could detect what extensions you have installed, gather data to profile you better for ads, and monitor what you’re doing in your browser while the tab is open.
Both are ultimately for the same purpose, to prevent people from avoiding to pay them, but methods matter.
Incorrect. https://gdpr.eu/eu-gdpr-personal-data/ states IP addresses are personal data.
Wow, so basically blacklisting email sender’s on ip address isn’t allowed either? When is an IP address, an individual and when is it just a machine in the cloud?
GDPR does NOT prohibit storing any information indefinitely if it is required for proper functioning of the service. If the service bans you by IP, they need your IP indefinitely to function properly and GDPR doesn’t apply. Just like you can’t remove yourself from a creditor black list, and it will have a lot more personal information than just an IP address.
What’s the email of the privacy committee again?
