News

🇫🇷 Excessive data collection by an online clairvoyance company

Retention & Minimisation, Confidentiality & Security | 25/03/2025

🔮 CNIL Fines an Online Fortune-Telling Company

Source :
SAN 2023-008 of June 8, 2023

Violations:

  • 🛑 EXCESSIVE DATA COLLECTION
  • 📋 CONSENT
  • 💉 SENSITIVE DATA
  • DATA RETENTION
  • 🎙️ CALL RECORDINGS
  • ⚠️ DATA BREACH

Facts:

In 2020, following a news article revealing a data breach from an online fortune-telling site, CNIL conducted several investigations.

The company KG COM offers online fortune-telling consultations via its website, chat, or phone. CNIL identified several violations, including:

  • 🎙️ Systematic recording of phone conversations.
  • 💉 Collection of sensitive data such as information related to sexual orientation and health status.
  • 💳 Retention of banking data without the consent of the individual concerned.
  • 🚨 Failure to notify the data breach.


Identified Violations:

  1. 🎙️ Phone Call Recordings:
    • Lack of data minimization, Article 5.1.c of the GDPR.
  2. 💉 Sensitive Data:
    • Failure to obtain prior consent for the collection of sensitive data, Article 9 of the GDPR.
  3. 🚨 Data Breach:
    • Failure to notify CNIL of a data breach, Article 33 of the GDPR.
  4. 🔐 Data Security:
    • Insufficient protection of data (weak website password, site using HTTP instead of HTTPS), Article 32 of the GDPR.

Consequences:

  • 💰 120,000 euro fine for the online fortune-telling company KG COM.
  • 💸 30,000 euro fine for using cookies without prior consent (absence of informational banners, placing 3 cookies on users' devices without their consent).

 

The GDPR, Even in Fortune-Telling 🔮

This sanction serves as a reminder of the importance of complying with data protection regulations, even for businesses in niche sectors like online fortune-telling.

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