Netherlands privacy advocates sue AppLovin over alleged unlawful tracking and data trading practices – JURIST
Publish Date: 2026-05-22 13:13:00
Source Domain: www.jurist.org
A Dutch privacy advocacy group filed a class-action lawsuit against US-based tech company AppLovin on Thursday, alleging the company unlawfully collected and traded the personal data of millions of Dutch users, including an estimated 1.5 million children, through hidden tracking software embedded in popular mobile applications. Amnesty International Netherlands backed the legal challenge.
The lawsuit, filed by The Privacy Collective, focuses on software allegedly integrated into widely used applications and games, including CapCut, Vinted, and Subway Surfers. According to the claim, the tracking tools collected behavioral and personal information to build detailed user profiles later shared with hundreds of companies for advertising purposes. Rights groups argue that children were particularly exposed to commercial exploitation because large-scale profiling systems can influence and monetize minors without meaningful understanding or consent.
The lawsuit is expected to hinge on alleged violations of the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which establishes strict rules governing the collection and use of personal information. Article 5 of the regulation requires that personal data be processed lawfully, fairly, and transparently, while limiting collection to specific and necessary purposes. Articles 6 and 7 further require organizations to establish a valid legal basis for processing data and ensure that user consent is freely given, informed, and unambiguous. Because the case involves the alleged collection of children’s data, Article 8, which provides heightened protections for minors using online information services, could become a key issue if courts determine that adequate safeguards were not in place. European courts have repeatedly emphasized that personal information cannot be subjected to arbitrary collection or processing without clear legal justification.
The lawsuit arrives amid wider debate in the Netherlands over…
