France Digitale, which represents 2,000 French start-ups, filed a complaint this Tuesday morning with the CNIL against a major player in the application ecosystem: Apple.
The organization asks the gendarme of personal data to look into the practices of the American giant on the display of targeted advertising within its own applications, which do not comply with European laws.
On iPhones running the iOS14 operating system, Apple collects various data on the user (geolocation, search and download history, etc.) in order to display advertisements related to their supposed tastes on the AppStore, Apple Stock Exchange and Apple News.
Problem: the user is considered consenting by default.
It's up to him to go to the settings of his iPhone to disable this targeting if he wishes.
"
Significant harm
"
"
The default and presumed approval by Apple of the user's consent cannot be declared to comply with European standards in the matter
", denounces France Digitale in its complaint consulted by Le Figaro, referring to the general data protection regulations (RGPD) and the European e-Privacy directive.
Apple explains in its guide to using the iPhone that "
in Apple News and the Stock Market, advertising proposals are in part based on what you read or follow
."
"
Your personal data is not communicated to other parties
", specifies the company.
For France Digitale, “
the user is insufficiently informed about the use and processing of his personal data.
Apple has therefore violated its obligation to provide information to its users.
"
In its complaint, the organization believes that Apple's practices cause "
significant harm
" to iPhone users, but also to "French
start-ups who scrupulously respect the rules set by the GDPR and fear suffering, for some of them, an abuse of a dominant position
”.