X Faces GDPR Complaint Over Unconsented AI Training

Austrian advocacy group NOYB, which is led by privacy activist Max Schrems, has lodged a formal complaint against the social media platform X, accusing the company of training its artificial intelligence systems with users’ personal data without proper consent, in violation of EU privacy regulations. 

The complaint was filed under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and targets the Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) and has been submitted to authorities in nine European Union countries.

The complaint comes amid ongoing legal scrutiny, with an Irish court recently mandating that X cease using personal data collected from EU users for AI training until users are given a clear option to withdraw their consent. Despite this ruling, NOYB argues that X’s compliance measures are insufficient, highlighting issues with the company's cooperation and mitigation strategies rather than the core legality of data processing.

Schrems said that the goal is to ensure X adheres to EU law, which mandates obtaining user consent for such data practices. At a recent hearing, it was revealed that X had only provided users with the opportunity to object to data collection several weeks after it had already commenced. 

In response, X has pledged to work with the DPC to address these concerns, though NOYB remains focused on ensuring full compliance with GDPR.

(Inputs from Reuters)