Are those relentless notifications actually unlawful?
Connected Consumers round up #17
Photo by Paul Hanaoka
WhatsApp’s continual reminders to accept new terms could be unlawful: if you’re one of the 2 billion people worldwide who use WhatsApp, you’ll be familiar with the repeated notifications to accept their new terms and conditions. Privacy campaigners and data protection regulators are already concerned with the content of the new terms but this complaint brought by nine European consumer groups takes a different angle. It claims that the nature, content, timing and frequency of the notifications to accept changes puts undue pressure on users to tick yes, thus limiting their freedom of choice and breaking EU rules on Unfair Commercial Practices. Smartphone users won’t be surprised at receiving these kind of repeated notifications that you’ll do anything to get rid of, but might be surprised that this kind of practice is not just irritating but potentially illegal.
Amazon should repay consumers for overpriced pandemic goods: A British trade union has submitted a formal complaint to the Competition regulator against Amazon, claiming it abused its dominant market position in relation to price gouging during the first Covid-19 pandemic peak in 2020. Unite represents workers including those at Amazon, but this claim is focusing on the vulnerable consumers who had to rely on online shopping during the lockdown and faced inflated prices from sellers on the platform. Unite’s investigation found 50 different items including face masks, toilet paper and hand wash were on sale for at least double their usual price between March and July last year. They want the company to be held accountable for the price gouging that happened on their platform and to repay those who were overcharged - which as they point out should be simple enough given “Amazon know what customers bought, who overpaid, and where they live”.
Freedom phone launched in US to appeal to alt-right: A new smartphone has been released which claims to “take back control” with an “uncensorable app store” and privacy features to prevent tracking. It is aimed at pro-Trump supporters feeling aggrieved at social media closing the doors on the former president and the removal of messaging services like Parler. However, to most tech reviewers the $500 device just looks like an android phone with its own app store.
How much would you pay for private search? A new search engine which doesn’t collect data and doesn’t serve adverts has been launched costing around $5 per month. Neeva also seems to be moving into what’s called ‘VRM’ or vendor relationship management which is basically where the consumer reveals what they are in the market for and their price range and waits for sellers to come back with an offer. As pressure builds on the online adtech model, could paid search be the future?
Robot fire causes delays to grocery shoppers: Online grocery store Ocado had to cancel deliveries as three robots used in the warehouse crashed and set fire. The safety of people around robots is always a top priority, but who is protecting them from each other?
Chile is regulating ‘mind-reading’ technology before it happens: Neurotechnology is the term for different types of technologies that can track, understand and translate people’s mental states and moods. One country is already looking to embed neuro-rights within its constitution to make sure it can never be applied.