In one of the largest GDPR fines imposed, a regional data protection authority in Germany fined H&M Germany €35.2 million (U.S. $41.3 million) for excessive monitoring of several hundred employees by one of the retailer’s subsidiaries.
Europe
‘FinCEN Files’ show Europe’s AML efforts maybe aren’t so world class
The damning revelations from the “FinCEN Files” leaks have once again put Europe and its supposed world-leading anti-money laundering rules under the spotlight.
Companies face greater risk as GDPR class actions emerge
In the past month three of the world’s largest tech firms have been hit with legal actions that could lead to billion-dollar damages suits for alleged violations of the GDPR. Neil Hodge explores the trend and what to expect moving forward.
Swedbank being investigated for suspected market abuse
Swedbank announced the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority has opened an investigation into the bank for potential violations of the regulation on market abuse in connection to the disclosure of suspected money laundering.
FRC fines Deloitte record $19.4M for Autonomy audit failures
The U.K. Financial Reporting Council fined Deloitte a record £15 million (U.S. $19.4 million) for numerous findings of misconduct regarding past audits of British software company Autonomy Corporation.
Assessing the fallout from coronavirus relief loan frauds
In both the U.S. and U.K., millions (perhaps billions) of dollars of coronavirus relief loans intended for small businesses is believed to have been misused. Legitimate businesses have been hurt as a result, writes Martin Woods.
EY chairman: Auditors should work harder to find fraud
The chairman and chief executive of Big Four auditing firm EY says auditors should do more to uncover fraud while conducting external audits, a topic the industry has historically been reluctant to tackle.
U.K. lawsuit seeks $3.2B from YouTube for violating children’s privacy
A first-of-its-kind lawsuit in the U.K. alleges YouTube unlawfully collects personal information from children without parental consent and harvests their data for advertising purposes, in violation of British and European data privacy laws.
Ramifications of Ireland’s data transfer order to Facebook could be ‘profound’
The Irish DPC’s order to Facebook to halt the transfer of European citizens’ personal data to the United States could pose operational and legal challenges that set a precedent for not only other tech giants, but companies generally.
More Privacy Shield fallout: Swiss-U.S. pact ruled inadequate
The Swiss Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner believes the Swiss-U.S. Privacy Shield “does not provide an adequate level of protection for data transfer from Switzerland to the US.”


