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TikTok Unveils New Measures Ahead of EU Digital Services Act

A visitor passes the TikTok exhibition stand at the Gamescom computer gaming fair in Cologne, Germany, Aug. 25, 2022. (AP)
A visitor passes the TikTok exhibition stand at the Gamescom computer gaming fair in Cologne, Germany, Aug. 25, 2022. (AP)
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TikTok Unveils New Measures Ahead of EU Digital Services Act

A visitor passes the TikTok exhibition stand at the Gamescom computer gaming fair in Cologne, Germany, Aug. 25, 2022. (AP)
A visitor passes the TikTok exhibition stand at the Gamescom computer gaming fair in Cologne, Germany, Aug. 25, 2022. (AP)

Chinese-owned social media platform TikTok has announced a raft of new features for European users aimed at improving compliance with incoming European Union regulations.

Under the EU's Digital Services Act (DSA), TikTok's owner ByteDance, Alphabet unit Google, other large online platforms will be required to police illegal content on their platforms, prohibit certain advertising practices, and share data with authorities.

But after TikTok agreed to a voluntary "stress test" last month, EU industry chief Thierry Breton said "more work" was needed for the firm to be fully compliant.

"TikTok is dedicating significant resources to compliance," Breton told CNN. "Now it's time to accelerate to be fully compliant."

On Friday, the firm revealed new measures it had taken to comply with the DSA: making it easier for European users to report illegal content, allowing them to turn off personalized recommendations for videos and removing targeted advertising for users aged 13-17.

"We will continue to not only meet our regulatory obligations, but also strive to set new standards through innovative solutions," the company said.

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Mozilla Hit with Privacy Complaint Over Firefox User Tracking

FILE PHOTO: The Firefox logo is seen at a Mozilla stand during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, February 28, 2013. REUTERS/Albert Gea/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: The Firefox logo is seen at a Mozilla stand during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, February 28, 2013. REUTERS/Albert Gea/File Photo
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Mozilla Hit with Privacy Complaint Over Firefox User Tracking

FILE PHOTO: The Firefox logo is seen at a Mozilla stand during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, February 28, 2013. REUTERS/Albert Gea/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: The Firefox logo is seen at a Mozilla stand during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, February 28, 2013. REUTERS/Albert Gea/File Photo

Vienna-based advocacy group NOYB on Wednesday said it has filed a complaint with the Austrian data protection authority against Mozilla accusing the Firefox browser maker of tracking user behavior on websites without consent.
NOYB (None Of Your Business), the digital rights group founded by privacy activist Max Schrems, said Mozilla has enabled a so-called “privacy preserving attribution” feature that turned the browser into a tracking tool for websites without directly telling its users, Reuters reported.
Mozilla had defended the feature, saying it wanted to help websites understand how their ads perform without collecting data about individual people. By offering what it called a non-invasive alternative to cross-site tracking, it hoped to significantly reduce collecting individual information.
While this may be less invasive than unlimited tracking, it still interferes with user rights under the EU’s privacy laws, NOYB said, adding that Firefox has turned on the feature by default.
“It’s a shame that an organization like Mozilla believes that users are too dumb to say yes or no,” said Felix Mikolasch, data protection lawyer at NOYB. “Users should be able to make a choice and the feature should have been turned off by default.”
Open-source Firefox was once a top browser choice among users due to its privacy features but now lags market leader Google’s Chrome, Apple’s Safari and Microsoft’s Edge with a low single-digit market share.
NOYB wants Mozilla to inform users about its data processing activities, switch to an opt-in system and delete all unlawfully processed data of millions of affected users.
NOYB, which in June filed a complaint against Alphabet for allegedly tracking users of its Chrome browser, had also filed hundreds of complaints against big tech companies, some leading to big fines.