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Facebook responds to EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

The creation of a Europe-wide level of privacy is also something that concerns companies that are headquartered in non-European countries, such as, for example, the American company Facebook Inc.

The social network is currently asking users for consent to change their privacy settings. This is due to the impending European data protection regulation. Without consenting to the new terms of use, Facebook can no longer be used.

There are three more things that Facebook is demanding users to agree to. These have to do with: personalized advertising, an option to activate facial recognition, updated terms and data policy as well as terms for cookie use. Facebook users are currently being asked to agree to the new terms. Users can also agree themselves by going to their Facebook settings.


WhatsApp raises its minimum age
The messaging service WhatsApp, which belongs to the Facebook group, is raising the minimum age for its users from 13 to 16 years in the implementation of the new EU data protection regulation. The regulation, which shall apply from 25 May 2018, requires however no strict controls for verifying the age limit, for example uploading proof of age. Therefore, WhatsApp is not planning on implementing any such control. New and existing WhatsApp users will soon be asked in the app if they are 16 or older. The EU data protection regulation requires the consent of parents for data processing up to age 16.