If you do not know how the data protection regulations affect social networks, you have come to the right place, in this post we will explain how social networks must comply with the LOPD so that you know how you can exercise your rights regarding your data personal.
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How does the Data Protection Law affect social networks?
Social networks, like the rest of companies and digital services, were forced to adapt their privacy policies to comply with the new regulation and the new law, which introduced important changes regarding the duty to inform, the obligation to collect the express consent of the interested parties for the treatment of their data and enable the mechanisms so that they can exercise their ARCO rights (Access, Rectification, Cancellation, and Opposition) at any time, which were increased with two new rights: limitation, portability and I forget.
Surely you will remember having received emails at that time in which all your digital and non-digital services, but which collect personal data, informed you of these developments and asked you to accept the treatment of your personal data again.
In addition, the adaptation of both the RGPD and the LOPD in social networks implied that the enabling of new privacy settings so that users can decide themselves with whom they share their profiles and publications in them, as you can see in our Guide on digital privacy on the Internet.
Latest changes in the data protection of our social networks
Below we will see what were the last and main changes in the field of data protection in social networks that introduced both the RGPD and the LOPDGDD and that led these platforms to have to completely review their privacy policies.
Among the main changes that Facebook introduced in your privacy to adapt to the European data protection regulation we have:
- Improvement of the tools to access the information that is shared about us and be able to download it (duty to inform interested parties and comply with the right of access).
- Changes regarding the display and use of advertisements on the social network.
- Improvement of the information that is shared and facilitated through mobile devices.
- New measures for the use and access of adolescents to their Facebook profiles.
You can find all the information regarding data protection on Facebook in their Data Policy section, an extensive explanation where they detail the treatment they carry out of our personnel according to the guidelines of the RGPD.
Twitter also included the necessary changes in its privacy policies and I have made the pertinent communication to its users with the entry into force of the RPGD. In the case of this social network, the changes were not very extensive, since it had already been complying with the previous regulations in force.
Thus, the main novelties introduced by Twitter were:
- To be able to request the direct download of our history at any time.
- Inform us about the degree of protection of our Twist and information that we share publicly on the social network.
- I no longer be able to link Twitter posts to Facebook for direct posting.
As with the rest of the websites and social networks, you can read the complete Twitter privacy policy.
Currently, Instagram belongs to Facebook, but that does not imply that both platforms can share the personal data of its users automatically. Therefore, among the main changes introduced by the photography platform to adapt to the RGPD we find:
- The obligation to communicate the use of personal data and have the express consent of users on data shared between platforms of the same group.
- Incorporation of an option to facilitate the download of our publications on Instagram.
Like Facebook, in the Help section of Instagram, we can read its privacy policies in full.
As in the case of Twitter, LinkedIn did not have to make too many changes to its privacy policy to adapt to the RGPD, so the management of our personal data in this professional social network hardly changed.
The main change that was introduced was the possibility of denying that our profile and data can be seen outside the platform itself, an option available since 2017, which was not without controversy because it seemed to involve the sale of personal data of users of LinkedIn.
You can manage your privacy on LinkedIn at any time, by accessing your account settings.
Tik Tok
Tik Tok is one of the most recent social networks and has begun to gain more prominence among users of this type of platform. You have recently updated your privacy for residents of the European Economic Area, UK, and Switzerland.
In this privacy policy, they undertake to protect and respect the privacy of their users, with a special section for minors between 13 and 18 years of age, and they detail us how and for what our personal data is treated, as well as the information that is collected About us. Likewise, we are also informed of the way in which we can exercise our rights in accordance with current legislation, the time they will keep the data, and the means of notification that they will use to notify us of any change in the privacy policy.
Youtube
Although YouTube is not exactly a social network, but a platform to watch and share videos, it is important that we know how the changes brought about by the RGPD with respect to the treatment of personal data of its users and that you will be able to read in its privacy policies.
By being part of Google, it shares many of the aspects and considerations regarding privacy management by its users, in fact, from the Data and Personalization section of myaccount.google.com, we can also configure the privacy options of Youtube.
Like Instagram, WhatsApp is also part of Facebook and also had to adapt its data protection policies to the RGPD when the merger of the two companies took place. Among the most notable changes we find:
- The obligation to communicate the use of personal data and have the express consent of users on the data shared by both platforms.
- The minimum age for using the platform is 16 years old.
- Incorporation of end-to-end encryption in chats.
In the WhatsApp legal section, we will find all the updates regarding its completely detailed privacy and security policy.
