Britons locked out of foreign websites in EU data chaos
THE internet was plunged into chaos yesterday in the biggest ever shake-up of data protection and online privacy laws.
Britons were blocked by some foreign sites and several web-connected video games stopped working as a result of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
It requires any organisation holding personal data to ensure they have consent to do so – or face fines of up to 20million euros (£17.5million) or 4 per cent of turnover, whichever is greater.
The EU rules are designed to protect customers’ data and cut unwanted correspondence.
Yesterday, however, US news websites including the LA Times and New York Daily News were blocked in Europe in the wake of the changes.
It is thought the publishers are wary of the risk of being fined, though it is unclear how they collect personal data of users accessing the websites.
Several video games connected to the internet also stopped working in the UK, The Sun reported.
Google- owned Nest, which sells web-connected thermostats, asked users to agree to a new privacy policy before they could change the temperature in their homes.
The issues have been blamed on confusion over the exact rules. Some firms have deleted all European users’ accounts just to be on the safe side.
Church of England priests were reportedly told they would no longer be able to name parishioners in prayers.
Marcus Walker, rector of St Bartholomew-the-Great, central London, tweeted: ‘We’ve been told we can’t pray for anyone who hasn’t given their personal consent, which is just ridiculous.’ He later said ‘publicly praying for those who have been added to our prayer board can continue’.
But churches have been told they must get consent from parishioners whose details are to feature on a noticeboard, church mailing list or parish newsletter, The Daily Telegraph reported. Web giants Facebook, Google, Instagram and Whatsapp were among those accused of breaching the new laws yesterday.
Privacy group Noyb said it filed complaints against the tech companies because it believes they are using what it calls ‘forced consent’.
Privacy activist Max Schrems told The Daily Telegraph: ‘Facebook has even blocked accounts of users who have not given consent … users only had the choice to delete the account or hit the agree button – that’s not a free choice.’
Facebook privacy officer Erin Egan said: ‘We have prepared for the past 18 months to ensure we meet the requirements … We have made our policies clearer, our privacy settings easier to find and introduced better tools for people to access, download, and delete their information.’
A spokesman for Google said it was committed to ‘meaningful data transparency and control’ across its services.
There had been fears GDPR would force small charities to cut ties with donors. Other small organisations expressed concern over extra red tape.
But Information Commissioner Elizabeth Dunham, responsible for enforcing GDPR in the UK, told BBC Radio 4’s Today: ‘It is nonsense to think [we’re] going to be making examples of small businesses by levying large fines. The focus is not going to be on the high street butcher.’