“Amazon illegally tracks customers on other websites”

A Dutch privacy organisation is demanding compensation from Amazon, as it alleges the e-commerce giant is “data-slurping” – meaning tracking users without approval on hundreds of other websites.

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The Stichting Data Bescherming Nederland (Data Protection Netherlands Foundation) is threatening to file a lawsuit against Amazon, demands compensation for Dutch customers with user profiles. The foundation asks that the retail giant should start to comply with the law, and says it still wants to reach an agreement through talks. If that fails, however, it threatens to launch a class action lawsuit.

Amazon is said to illegally collect data on consumers through cookies on “hundreds of popular Dutch websites”. In itself, this is not prohibited, but the e-commerce giant allegedly does not ask users for permission and sometimes even places cookies if a customer has explicitly refused them.

Unsafe storage

It is possible that the issue could enter the scope of the Digital Services Act, because since the end of April, Europe considers the e-commerce giant a “Very Large Online Player”. As a result, the company is no longer allowed in Europe to make recommendations based on user profiling, something it still does according to the foundation.

Furthermore, users are not given full access to their data and personal data is stored unsafely in the United States “without the required safeguards”, the foundation said. In a response, Amazon said that it complies with all legal requirements in each country and region, but that it will respond to the complaint letter in substance later. Last year, the foundation also launched a lawsuit against Twitter.