Google accessing Fitbit data major privacy risk: EU advisors
San Francisco, Feb 21 (IANS) The European Data Protection Board (EDPB) was warned the European Commission of the potential privacy risks of Google having access to Fitbit’s data.
This comes in the wake of the tech giant’s plan to scoop up the health and activity data of millions of Fitbit users, months after its parent company Alphabet acquired it.
Regulators are in the process of considering whether to allow the tech giant to gobble up all this data, TechCrunch reported on Thursday.
In a statement, the board writes: “There are concerns that the possible further combination and accumulation of sensitive personal data regarding people in Europe by a major tech company could entail a high level of risk to the fundamental rights to privacy and to the protection of personal data.”
It is pertinent to note that, as it stands today, Google is still waiting on regulatory approval for its Fitbit acquisition.
In the EU, how privacy is handled will have a huge impact on whether or not the deal goes through.
The EDPB also leaves a reminder that Google and Fitbit are obligated to conduct a transparent assessment of “the data protection requirements and privacy implications” regarding this merger. The US Justice Department has also raised concerns, according to 9to5Google.
Aplphabet-Google acquired Fitbit as a whole for $2.1 billion late last year, a deal that includes the user data of Fitbit customers including activity, sleep, location, and other health data.
