Ireland’s Data Protection Commission has opened two investigations into Facebook and Instagram, both dealing with how the latter processes children’s data on its platform, it said in a statement on Monday. Broadly, the first inquiry will focus on Facebook’s legal bases for processing children’s personal data, and the second one will analyse Instagram’s profile and account settings, and how appropriate they are for protecting children’s privacy. As part of the first enquiry, the regulator will assess whether Facebook has a legal basis for processing children’s personal data, and if Instagram has adequate protections for their data. This Inquiry will also consider whether Facebook meets its obligations as a data controller with regard to transparency requirements under Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation. The second inquiry will explore Facebook’s adherence with the requirements in the GDPR in respect to Data Protection by Design and Default. A researcher had found personal data of millions of kids using Instagram was accessible easily: The regulator’s investigation reportedly comes a year after complaints by US-based researcher over Instagram’s handling of children’s personal data, Telegraph first reported. In a blog post published on Medium last year, Stier revealed that he analysed nearly 200,000 Instagram users in multiple countries and found that for more than a year over 60 million children could change their personal accounts into an Instagram business account, which exposed their personal information such as phone number and email address. It should be noted that the Irish DPC’s statement doesn’t specify that its investigation is…
