The French data protection authority is investigating Apple's advertising tools in response to a complaint from a lobby group that claims Apple does not apply the same conditions as those required of iOS app developers.
On March 9, lobby group France Digitale filed a complaint with the French National Commission for Informatics and Freedom (CNIL), alleging that Apple does not apply data protection rules that iOS app developers must adhere to. On Tuesday confirmed the CNIL said it was looking into the matter. The regulator, which deals with privacy and data rules in France, has begun investigating the allegations, a spokesperson confirmed to Bloomberg. It is not known how long the preliminary investigation will last.
Topic is related to App Tracking Transparency feature
But it could lead to a deeper investigation or requests for Apple to make changes to its own systems.
We need to carry out a detailed investigation into what has been sent to us before the CNIL can proceed, as it needs to determine whether EU data protection or e-privacy rules apply, CNIL spokesman Yohann Brunet said.
The issue is related to Apple's upcoming App Tracking Transparency feature, which is set to be implemented in iOS and iPadOS in the next few weeks. The initiative will force app developers to ask users for permission before the app can track the device, which would enable personalized advertising.
Apple's personalized advertising works differently
France Digitale's complaint to the regulator alleges that Apple's own advertising system for the App Store, Apple News, and the Stocks app does not require such permission from users. The feature, called "Personalized Ads," allegedly uses user data to identify and display ads without requiring permission. Apple denies the allegations, calling them "patently false" and stating that "privacy is built into the ads we sell on our platform without tracking them." Apple's personalized ads work by "grouping users who share similar characteristics, such as downloaded apps, age, country or location, and gender, into segments, so that a given campaign or set of campaigns cannot identify a specific user," Apple's privacy chief, Jane Horvath, wrote in a letter on the matter. (Photo by Denys Prykhodov / Bigstockphoto)
