Microsoft is again under the microscope in the European Union, however Teams not guilty after all. Austrian defense group Neub filed two complaints 365 v. Microsoft for the use of educational software in schools and children’s privacy. The group is also responsible for past complaints against tech giants OpenAI, Meta, Spotify and more.
Neub claims that Microsoft 365 Education “According to Microsoft’s own documentation, embedded cookies that analyze user behavior, collect browser data and are used for advertising” — without the school’s knowledge. The advocacy group further claims that Microsoft is “consistently vague” about what it does with students’ data and may be secretly tracking children.
“The data flow analysis is very disturbing. Microsoft 365 Education is tracking users regardless of their age,” said Felix Mikolas, data protection lawyer at Neub.. “This practice could affect hundreds of thousands of pupils and students in the EU and EEA. The authorities must finally strengthen and effectively enforce the rights of minors.”
Neub also claims Microsoft imposes its General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) obligations on schools without providing any access or information to privacy policies or data collection. “Microsoft keeps all basic information about data processing in its software, but points the finger at schools when it comes to exercising rights,” Maartje de Graaf, another data protection lawyer at Neub, said in a statement. “Schools do not have the ability to comply with their obligations of transparency and information.”
GDPR establishes strict rules for the protection of the data of minors, focusing on additional protection of the individual, transparency and accountability. Violations of the GDPR can result in fines of up to 20 million euros ($22 million) or four percent of a company’s annual worldwide turnover in the previous year – whichever is greater.
