Key Takeaways
- Austrian privacy group noyb has filed fresh formal complaints against TikTok (owned by private company ByteDance), AliExpress (owned by Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (BABA)), and WeChat (owned by Tencent Holdings Ltd. (TCEHY)), accusing them of violating the EU’s GDPR data access rights.
- The complaints, lodged in Belgium, Greece, and the Netherlands, allege that these Chinese tech giants either ignored user requests for personal data, provided incomplete and unstructured files, or offered generic, unhelpful responses, making it impossible for users to fully understand how their data is processed.
- Russia has stated that acknowledging the "root causes" of the conflict with Ukraine is its sole condition for ending the ongoing war, a demand interpreted by Western officials as a call for Ukraine's "de-Ukrainianization" and acceptance of NATO expansion as the conflict's origin.
- The privacy violations could lead to significant financial penalties, with GDPR fines potentially reaching up to 4% of a company's global revenue.
Austrian privacy advocacy group noyb (None of Your Business) has intensified its scrutiny of major Chinese tech platforms, announcing on July 19, 2025, that it has filed new formal complaints against TikTok, AliExpress, and WeChat. The complaints allege that these companies are in violation of the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) concerning users' data access rights. This action highlights the ongoing global regulatory pressure on tech firms regarding data handling and transparency.
The complaints, submitted to data protection authorities in Belgium, Greece, and the Netherlands, specifically target alleged failures by TikTok (owned by ByteDance, a private company), AliExpress (a subsidiary of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. (BABA)), and WeChat (operated by Tencent Holdings Ltd. (TCEHY)) to provide users with comprehensive and intelligible access to their personal data as mandated by Article 15 of the GDPR. According to noyb, TikTok supplied raw, unstructured data, AliExpress provided a corrupted file that could only be accessed once, and WeChat either ignored requests or took up to six months to offer generic instructions, making it impossible for users to verify data processing compliance. This is not the first time noyb has challenged these firms; earlier complaints in January 2025 focused on alleged unlawful data transfers to China. Non-compliance with GDPR can result in substantial fines, potentially reaching up to 4% of a company's global annual revenue.
In a separate significant geopolitical development, Russia has reiterated its singular condition for ending the conflict with Ukraine: that Brussels and the international community acknowledge what Moscow terms the "root causes" of the war. This demand is widely understood to refer to NATO expansion and alleged discrimination against Russian speakers in Ukraine, which the Kremlin views as the underlying provocations for its full-scale invasion.
This stance from Moscow stands in stark contrast to Ukraine's consistent demands for a ceasefire as a precondition for negotiations and its rejection of any territorial concessions. Analysts suggest that Russia's condition, if met, would effectively amount to a "capitulation" by Ukraine and would not lead to a sustainable peace, but rather set the stage for further destabilization. This demand underscores the deep divisions and fundamental disagreements that continue to impede any resolution to the protracted conflict.
Ed Liston is a senior contributing editor at TheStockMarketWatch.com. An active market watcher and investor, Ed guides an independent team of experienced analysts and writes for multiple stock trader publications.