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Many US news sites have yet to comply with the EU's General Data Protection Regulation after more than two months, leaving European visitors blocked.
Digital outlets run by Tronc, Lee Enterprises and GateHouse Media are among the hundreds of US news websites that remain unavailable within the EU, according to NiemanLab.
The General Data Protection Regulation, also known as GDPR, is designed to give the EU's 500 million citizens greater control over how their information is used online. Adopted in April 2016, its provisions became directly applicable in EU member states after a two-year transitional period.
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Hundreds of US News Sites Unavailable in Europe Two Months After GDPR
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Operator, please trace this call and tell me where I am.
(Score: 5, Informative) by janrinok on Friday August 10 2018, @08:54AM (7 children)
No, I read it as US news sites are exploiting the data of anyone who accesses their site. However, as they cannot do that with the data of EU citizens, they simply don't give them access.
The fact that Americans are happy for this state of affairs to exist is not a problem for Europeans.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 10 2018, @04:40PM (2 children)
The OP makes the unsupported claim that the sites are "operating illegally." I want
to know exactly what they're doing that's supposedly illegal. Your response doesn't
answer that, unless you're implying that for a U.S. website to gather data on non-EU
people violates the GDPR. If that's what you mean, just say it.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 10 2018, @05:40PM (1 child)
OP is claiming the sites are operating illegally with regards to GDPR - if Europeans can access the sites. From a US standpoint, there is nothing illegal with gathering and selling any and all information about US site visitors. In the US we are simply cattle with valuable data.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 10 2018, @06:25PM
First sentence of the summary says that European visitors are blocked. The website operators are doing the blocking. That's the gist of the story. We all know that blocks can be circumvented. That doesn't mean the site operators aren't making a good-faith effort. Where's the evidence that they're not acting in good faith, that Europeans can readily access their sites?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 10 2018, @04:54PM (3 children)
The key claim the OP is making is that the sites are "operating
illegally." The OP offered no support for the claim. I asked for at
least a clarification of it. Exactly what are these websites doing
that's supposedly illegal? The site owners, presumably, think that
blocking access from Europe puts them in compliance with the GDPR. The
OP seems to think they're violating it, or some other unspecified law.
Your response doesn't address that, unless you're implying that for
a U.S. website to gather data on non-EU people somehow violates the
GDPR. If that's what you mean, just say it.
>The fact that Americans are happy for this state of affairs to exist
is not a problem for Europeans.
For hundreds of U.S. news sites to be unavailable to Europeans isn't a
problem for Europeans? Then why submit the story?
(Score: 4, Interesting) by janrinok on Friday August 10 2018, @05:33PM (2 children)
The law was announced and came into effect in 2016. However, the EU announced that they would give those holding data on EU citizens would be given time to sort themselves out. Nevertheless, even as the cut off date for the full compliance with the law was reached earlier this year many US companies had taken no action to reach any compliance. During all of that time they were technically 'breaking the law' although they probably knew that no formal legal action would be taken. The reason that they have prevented access to their sites is because they are still abusing personal data, or at least not protecting it, to an extent that is now be illegal under the GDPR if it was done to Europeans.
Because it seems quite strange to us in the rest of the world that US citizens view the abuse of their personal data as something that they have to accept and is entirely normal. Perhaps you have missed the concern in the US of the abuse of data by, say, social media? The 'loss' of US news sites probably hasn't been noticed by most Europeans. US news is viewed here as often being very US centric to the extent that it seems to ignore other important events happening elsewhere in the world - but that is not for us to address.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 10 2018, @06:53PM
"Because it seems quite strange to us in the rest of the world that US citizens view the abuse of their personal data as something that they have to accept and is entirely normal. "
europeans: the original patronizing yankees. yes, we have a certain unfortunate percentage of ignorant bleeting sheople in this country, but i fail to see how EU chattle are any better. the vast majority of your people are run by scum just like the US. just b/c your rulers sit in brussels and act like legitimately elected representatives of the people is irrelevant.
(Score: 2) by legont on Saturday August 11 2018, @04:20AM
The logic probably goes like this. If a US website implements the European law and makes a mistake, it may be costly. The implementation is also costly. European visitors don't bring enough money and don't fit the model. The best course of action - forget Europe even exists and block it forever.
While I actually on your side, you got to realize that the US is an island and does not give a flying shit about anybody else. Before WWII the US did not give a shit and did not participate; after the WWII the US dictates but still does not give a shit. BTW, the chances are the US will go back to the before WWII state pretty soon.
"Wealth is the relentless enemy of understanding" - John Kenneth Galbraith.