Irish authorities are conducting a European investigation following complaints about the way Facebook's Instagram app handles data from underage users, the Irish regulator announced.
The Irish Data Protection Commission launched two separate paths last month after receiving complaints that phone numbers and email addresses of those under the age of 18 were available to all network users, according to a statement.
This Irish regulator oversees Facebook's activities in the European Union, since the giant US network has a regional headquarters in Ireland.
One of the officials of the sector regulator, Graham Doyle, mentioned that "Instagram is a social network widely used by children in Ireland and the rest of Europe" and pointed out that the authority "has examined complaints from individuals and identified potential problems associated with processing the personal data of children through Instagram, which requires more." From the lesson ".
The Irish Authority will determine whether "Instagram" has put in place the necessary technical controls to protect user data, especially minors, while the network requires that its users have reached the age of 13 at least.
The regulator will also verify that the social network respects European legislation on data protection in relation to account management.
For her part, a spokeswoman for "Instagram" explained that the social network cooperates closely with the Irish Data Protection Commission, stressing that it was clear (always) that data on professional accounts is available to all users.
However, a spokeswoman for the network said, "We have made several updates to professional accounts, and people can choose not to display all of their private data."