App account cancellation should not be so difficult| the Beijing News editorial

▲Infographic. Figure/IC photo

A few days ago, the "50 App Account Cancellation and Automated Recommendation Unsubscription Evaluation Report" (hereinafter referred to as the "Report") released by the China Consumer Association shows that many apps have problems such as unreasonable cancellation conditions, inability to directly cancel through apps, and difficulty in closing automated recommendations.

Among them, in terms of whether the App account can be successfully cancelled, 20 of the 50 Apps have different degrees of problems, accounting for 40% of the total troubleshooting. These problems include five major problems, such as not specifying the cancellation conditions, unreasonable settings of the cancellation conditions, and not being able to directly cancel through the App.

The difficulty of app cancellation has always been a chronic disease in the Internet industry. In recent years, from industry associations to competent departments have carried out relevant evaluations or urged the solution of related problems many times, the overall situation should be said to have improved.

However, judging from the latest evaluation report, as many as 20 of the 50 apps evaluated still have problems to varying degrees, which is undoubtedly worthy of the industry's wake-up call when the Personal Information Protection Law has been implemented today.

The "Information Security Technology Personal Information Security Specifications" implemented last year make it clear that personal data subjects cancel their accounts, and personal data controllers should not set unreasonable conditions or put forward additional requirements to increase personal data subjects' obligations during the cancellation process.

However, the cancellation conditions are not indicated, the cancellation conditions are set unreasonably, etc., in the final analysis, they are all trying to make it difficult for users, creating thresholds for cancellation, and obviously contradicting the relevant regulations.

The reason for the emergence of various "forced retention" user practices lies in the "small nine-nine" of some App operating companies.

For example, the valuation of the enterprise behind the App is often directly calculated by the number of users, and allowing users to easily log off and truly "come and go freely" is likely to put some platforms under greater pressure on user loss.

In addition, user accounts cannot be "one-click logout", which is also to a large extent the platform is coveting and occupying the information and data in personal accounts.

The platform has its own interests to consider, and there is nothing wrong with it. However, "staying" still has to be a way. Creating trouble for users to write off is not only ugly, violates relevant legal requirements, and seriously damages the rights and interests of users.

On the one hand, registration is easy to cancel and difficult, and such a hegemonic approach of "only entering and not leaving" will put the user's personal information at great risk. For example, many times, users register an App, just for temporary convenience. And when it is not needed, it cannot be logged out, which means that it can only be left idle, so the user is likely to bear the risk of account theft.

On the other hand, in today's mobile Internet popularization, everyone's network account is increasing, if registered means "immortality", but also inevitably bring excessive information burden to individuals.

Therefore, many countries have proposed the concept of the "right to be forgotten" on the Internet. China's relevant laws clearly require each platform and app to provide users with account cancellation convenience, and the essence is also based on this.

Therefore, whether it is based on the requirements of personal information protection, or out of respect for the user's "right to be forgotten", providing account cancellation convenience and truly realizing "my account is my master" should become the standard of all platforms and Apps, it should not be kidnapped by the "selfishness" of the platform and become the "unspoken rule" of the industry.

In fact, "openness" is one of the spiritual cores of the Internet, and even the basic right of users to cancel accounts cannot be guaranteed. Users cannot be allowed to "come and go freely", so why should we ensure users' free choice between platforms, and then force platforms to achieve healthy competition?

It must be reiterated that if the platform wants to retain users, relying on better service is the right way, and any "forced retention" and cleverness cannot really win the respect of users.

Judging from the governance process in recent years, the old problems of some App account cancellation difficulties cannot stop at exposure and urging, but must also be punished according to law. Taking this evaluation as an example, in addition to finding that some apps have difficulty in logging off, the phenomenon that automated recommendation is difficult to close also exists.

In this regard, the China Consumer Association will send rectification suggestions within the time limit to the App's affiliated enterprises and conduct interviews and exhortations. On this basis, the relevant departments may wish to intervene in a timely manner, start the corresponding law enforcement procedures, and through the hand of the law, the "hegemonic" behavior that ignores the rights and interests of users will be completely corrected.

Edit | Ma Xiaolong

Proofreading | Fu Chunyi