TikTok and Temu under fire for transferring user data to China

According to Bleepingcomputer , a nonprofit organization called "None of Your Business" (Noyb) has filed complaints against TikTok, AliExpress, SHEIN, Temu, and WeChat, accusing the companies of violating the European Union's (EU) General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) by illegally transferring European user data to China.

Noyb, founded by Austrian privacy activist Max Schrems, filed the complaints with data protection authorities in Greece, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands and Austria on behalf of users in those countries. The organization stressed that China aggressively collects citizens' data and processes it without appropriate restrictions, which is contrary to European Union data protection law.

TikTok and other Chinese tech companies are facing scrutiny from regulators around the world over data privacy concerns.

Under the GDPR, data transfers outside the European space are only allowed in exceptional cases and require evidence that the data is strictly protected against unauthorized access by the state or other parties.

Noyb said companies like Alibaba’s AliExpress, SHEIN and TikTok have admitted to transferring Europeans’ personal data to China, based on transparency reports and other documents. Meanwhile, Temu and Tencent’s messaging app WeChat transfer data to undisclosed “third countries,” most likely China.

Transfers of personal data outside the EU are only permitted if the receiving country ensures a level of data protection equivalent to that in the EU. Noyb argues that China does not meet this standard, so the transfer is illegal and must stop immediately.

This is the first time noyb has filed complaints against Chinese companies, previously the organization has mainly targeted US companies such as Apple, Alphabet and Meta, leading to multiple investigations and fines amounting to billions of dollars.

The complaints could result in a suspension of data transfers to China and fines of up to 4% of a company’s global revenue. The move comes as TikTok and other Chinese tech companies face increased scrutiny from regulators around the world over issues related to data security and user privacy.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/tiktok-va-temu-bi-khieu-nai-vi-chuyen-du-lieu-nguoi-dung-sang-trung-quoc-185250119094630138.htm