Wind Tre hit with EUR17m fine for data protection breaches

Italian fixed and mobile operator Wind Tre has been fined almost EUR17 million (USD19.3 million) for breaching data protection regulations with its direct marketing. Users had complained of receiving unsolicited emails, calls and text messages from the telco and were unable to remove themselves from the firm’s marketing database. There were also violations by Wind Tre’s sub-contractors and commercial partners, the Garante Privacy ruled. Wind Tre has been fined EUR16.73 million and must adopt new processes to ensure it adheres to data protection legislation.