LinkedIn Hit by 310 Million Euro Fine over Its Data Processing Practices

• The Data Protection Commission (DPC), Ireland's Data Watchdog, has finally concluded the investigation against LinkedIn and hit it with a fine of 310 million Euros.
• The verdict also requires the company to make some changes in order to be compliant with the local laws.
• LinkedIn has acknowledged and accepted the decision and has promised to make the necessary changes.

Ireland's Data Protection Commission (DPC) has hit LinkedIn with 310 million euros ($335 million) for mishandling user data. Along with that, the company will also have to amend its data processing process to be compliant with EU laws.

The decision was made by DPC Commissioners Dr Des Hogan and Dale Sunderland and LinkedIn has already been informed of the same (on October 22).

The verdict follows an investigation started by the DPC (who is also the lead supervisory authority for LinkedIn) into a 2018-complaint that was originally filed with the French Data Protection Authority by the digital rights non-profit La Quadrature Du Net.

However, the case was passed over to the DPC since it's the lead supervisory authority for Microsoft's (owner of LinkedIn) GDPR compliance.

A draft of its decision was submitted to the European GDPR cooperation mechanism in July (as required), and thankfully, no objections were raised.

• During the investigation, the agency evaluated how LinkedIn processed the data of its users for the purpose of behavioral analysis and targeted advertising.
• At the end of the assessment, the agency had several issues with regard to the transparency, fairness, and lawfulness of the company's data processing process.

For instance, one of the concerns raised was that there was no legal basis for LinkedIn processing user data. And as per EU laws, a legal basis is mandatory. The company claimed consent", legitimate interests" and contractual necessity" as some of the reasons but the DPC deemed all of them invalid.

What's worse, it also did not fully disclose to its customers how their data will be used. Hence, even if they did share their consent, it won't be valid.

What Does LinkedIn Have to Say About This?

LinkedIn has released a short statement addressing the situation.

Today the Irish Data Protection Commission (IDPC) reached a final decision on claims from 2018 about some of our digital advertising efforts in the EU.' - LinkedIn spokesperson

Although it believes that its data processing practices are already in compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), it will still try to incorporate the recommended changes within the given deadline, which is three months from now.

The full verdict and other related information are yet to be made public.

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