The Data Privacy Laws' Impacts on Search Engines and Social Media Service Providers
In this digital age, the amount of data stored and generated by individuals and organizations is rapidly increasing. From uploading a simple photo on Instagram to posting your company’s financial statement on your website. The staggering amount of data streaming is unstoppable, creating an ever-growing concern over the privacy of that data and how it is being used. In response, the government has started implementing new data privacy laws to protect information generated by its citizens. Although these laws may sound good on paper, they can have a significant impact on internet companies, such as search engines and social media service providers.
One such example that started it all is the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2020 (CCPA). The main point of the CCPA law is that people in California have the right to know about their data, consent to data collection, obtain a copy, find out where it was sold, and request for its deletion. CCPA is not applied to all companies that actively collect their customers’ data; only a few companies are required to follow these rules. CCPA only applies to companies that meet one or more of the following criteria:
1. A company with an annual gross revenue of more than $25 million USD.
2. Company that receives, buys and sells personal information from 50,000 or more consumers.
3. Buying and selling consumers’ personal information accounts for 50% or more of their annual gross revenue.
The criteria have been made that easily check out all social media and search engine service providers, which some would argue is a direct attack on their business model. Here are the reasons why:
One of the main points of data privacy laws is the right to be forgotten. Consumers have the right to request that their information be deleted from the platform if it is deemed irrelevant or if it violates their privacy. While this may seem like a good idea, it will cause serious decreases in quality for search engines and social media. Removing information from the platform can make it harder for consumers to find or interact with relevant information, and can result in the loss of important data without consumers realizing it.
Another aspect of data privacy laws is the increased emphasis on consumer consent. Consumers must give explicit consent for their personal data to be collected and used by service providers. The service providers must also provide the consumer with clear information about how their data will be used. This action will add one more step, resulting in less user-friendly and more inconvenient experiences. The main reason for this is that consumers will be bombarded with long terms and conditions that they must agree to before they can use the services.
Data privacy laws can also restrict service providers’ ability to provide the most relevant results to consumers. For example, they may need to implement filters to exclude results that are deemed to “infringe upon privacy rights”. They may also need to provide consumers with more control over the type of information displayed in the search results. This can result in a less efficient and less effective user experience, as consumers are no longer able to find the information they need as easily.
To sum it up, while data privacy laws like CCPA may seem beneficial on paper, they can have serious negative repercussions for internet service providers. They can restrict access to information, impair the overall user experience on the platform, and even make the service heavier due to more applications or steps needed to comply with the rule. While privacy is important, it is crucial that any new laws are careful to be made to ensure they do not have unintended consequences and impair the overall experience of search engines and social media service providers in providing the best experience for their users.
