A statement from consumer group, Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband, has revealed that a German court has told Apple on Tuesday, May 7th to change its customer data handling rules, as some of them are against the laws of the country. This statement from the consumer group was first reported by Bloomberg. The report also claimed that out of 15, eight general data-use provisions from Apple were found differing from the German laws therefore the court struck down those terms. In addition, Berlin court also said that the Cupertino-based tech giant cannot ask for “global consent” in order to use information or customer data on the localities of customers.
Here is what consumer group, Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband has stated on its website:
“Apple had already signed a binding declaration that it wouldn’t use seven of the 15 clauses VZBV had objected to before the German suit was filed, the consumer group said. The remaining eight provisions were invalidated by today’s ruling, VZBV said. German law allows recognized consumer groups to sue companies over illegal terms and conditions.”
“Apple asked customers in the terms for “global consent” to use their data, while German law requires that clients know in detail what data is used for what purpose, VZBV said. Apple also may not ask for permission to use names, addresses and phone numbers of users’ contacts.”
After the ruling, head of Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband, Gred Billen said that court’s verdict reflects the significance of consumers’ data protection in today’s digital world. However, the ruling applies to Germany only. Apple can make an appeal against this verdict as well but for now the court has also bound Apple not to share or deliver its consumer data with other companies that utilise it for advertisement.
After the verdict, Apple’s press office in Germany declined to make any comments on the case. This was not the first time that Apple has faced a privacy law suit, as it is already facing a similar trial in the U.S. court too. The lawsuit filed against the California-based company in the U.S. accuses the corporation for providing customers’ information to third parties for advertisement or marketing and improperly gathering the data of customers’ locations through iPhones, even if the geo-location of the handset was turned off.
In the U.S. lawsuit, Apple is accused of improperly collecting data on the locations of customers through iPhones, even after the device’s geo-location feature was turned off, and sharing personal information with third parties.
Technology companies face increased pressure from regulators over data protection and consumer rights. Google Inc. agreed last year to pay $22.5 million to settle U.S. Federal Trade Commission allegations it violated people’s privacy rights by breaching Apple’s Safari Internet browser.
Source: Bloomberg
Photo: iPhoneinCanada
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