UK law
Imgur owner MediaLab fined over children’s privacy failures
The ICO has fined Imgur owner, MediaLab. AI Inc, nearly £250,000 for failing to put in place basic safeguards to protect children’s information. The ICO says that unlawful processing meant children could have been exposed to harmful content on Imgur including content relating to eating disorders, antisemitism, homophobia and images of a sexual or violent nature. MediaLab processed children’s personal information without a valid lawful basis. Online services using the personal information of children under 13 can only rely on the lawful basis of consent, if consent is given by the child’s parent or carer. MediaLab did not check the age of its users, meaning it had no way of knowing which users were children. In addition, it failed to carry out a data protection impact assessment to identify and reduce risks to children. The processing triggered multiple high-risk criteria as it affected children, was large-scale and potentially exposed users to harmful content.
EU law
EU–Singapore digital trade agreement enters into force
The EU-Singapore Digital Trade Agreement (DTA) has entered into force. The DTA strengthens trade between the EU and Singapore with rules aimed at making cross-border digital transactions easier, more predictable and reliable for businesses and consumers. The agreement includes commitments on online consumer protection, personal data and privacy, and protection against unsolicited commercial messages. It aims to provide greater legal certainty for businesses by promoting paperless trade, ensuring the validity of electronic signatures, contracts and invoices, and prohibiting customs duties on electronic transmissions. It also aims to promote fair digital trade by prohibiting unjustified data localisation requirements and forced transfers of source code of software, protecting businesses from protectionist practices.
European Commission finds that Apple Ads and Apple Maps should not be designated under the Digital Markets Act
The European Commission has found that Apple’s online advertising service Apple Ads and Apple’s online intermediation service Apple Maps should not be designated under the Digital Markets Act (DMA). The decision not to designate Apple Ads and Apple Maps follows Apple’s notification of these services on 27 November 2025. Apple submitted arguments explaining why, in its view, the notified services should not qualify as important gateways between business users and end users. Following a review of Apple’s arguments, the Commission has concluded that Apple does not qualify as a gatekeeper in relation to Apple Ads and Apple Maps, as neither of these platform services constitute an important gateway for business users to reach end users. This assessment is based on several considerations, including that Apple Maps has a relatively low overall usage rate in the EU, and that Apple Ads has very limited scale in the online advertising sector in the EU. The Commission will continue to monitor market developments regarding these services, if any substantial changes arise. This decision does not affect the designation of Apple as a gatekeeper in September 2023 and April 2024 for other core platform services.
