24.08.2023 - The Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC), acting with nine other national data protection authorities, has published a joint statement to social media platform operators on the protection of personal data against data scraping. This is generally understood as the automated extraction of data from the internet.
Joint statement on data scraping and data protection
The statement urges social media companies and website operators to take measures to protect personal data against data scraping. Data scraping can result in a data breach. Under the new Federal Act on Data Protection (FADP), which comes into force on 1 September 2023, companies shall notify any breach of data security to the FDPIC if it is likely to lead to a high risk to the data subject's personality or fundamental rights (Art. 24 para. 1 new FADP).
The joint statement further lists the precautions individuals can take to minimise the risk of data scraping of their own personal data. Social media companies and other website operators are required to actively provide information on how they protect their customers against data scraping and on the measures their customers can take in order to protect their own data.
Last modification 11.12.2023