The Irish Data Protection Authority has imposed a hefty fine of 310 million euros on the LinkedIn platform, owned by Microsoft. This action comes after an ongoing investigation since 2018 following a complaint from a French organization, which revealed that the professional networking platform collected user data from external sources to analyze their behavior without obtaining prior consent or notifying them.
The Deputy Commissioner of the Irish Data Protection Authority pointed out that this behavior constitutes a serious violation of individuals’ fundamental rights related to the protection of their personal data. He confirmed that processing data without a legal basis is contrary to the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
On the other hand, LinkedIn announced its commitment to amending its advertising practices on the platform to comply with European legal requirements, even though it still believes that its previous actions were legally sound.
This penalty reflects the European authorities’ tightening of oversight on major tech companies’ user data practices, following shortly after a fine of $101.5 million imposed on Meta for storing user passwords without providing adequate protection for them.
