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by elSidCampeador 983 days ago
https://www.cnbc.com/id/37759560
2 comments

Money section:

"Moxley said they were told they were working for a U.S. company based in California, a story that later turned out to be untrue. It was really just a ruse to impress the workers and the entire community — they even had the mayor at the opening — that they were some fancypants American company.

Moxley said being a fake executive has become a lucrative source of income for expats living in China. Though, sorry ladies, this is China after all — they’re only hiring men.

Moxley said he knows a half dozen men who’ve done this type of work, and since he wrote an article about his experience in The Atlantic magazine, dozens more have written to him sharing their experiences. He was recruited by a friend of a friend — a headhunter for white guys in suits, if you will — but said sometimes you can also find ads in the local classifieds for this type of work."

> The page is blocked because of your cookie settings. To continue, please allow all cookies.

How is this legal?

How would it not be? "I refuse cookies" is not a protected class, thus a private business may discriminate it at will. Same way a business could refuse to admit patrons not wearing shoes or carrying a firearm.
Is that true under the GDPR?
GDPR does not regulate cookies, it regulates usage of PII (personally identifiable information). So blocking cookies on principle is not against it, but collecting PII without consent is. Forcing the user into accepting, such as saying "click accept or pay" also is.

[0] “Consent should not be regarded as freely given if the data subject has no genuine or free choice or is unable to refuse or withdraw consent without detriment.” – Example: https://noyb.eu/en/pay-or-okay-beginning-end#:~:text=No%20%2....

US companies aren't bound by the GDPR. European courts have no jurisdiction here.
> Ok, how does an EU court enforce an EU law on a US company with US assets? They can’t.

You mean like this? https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-59909647

European courts have jurisdiction in the EU, and CNBC is accessible in the EU unlike some other US websites, so they have to follow GDPR at least for EU visitors. And as far as I know cookie rejection must not influence the basic functionality of the site.
Ok, how does an EU court enforce an EU law on a US company with US assets? They can’t. That’s my point.
Unless you're in the EU, or some place that also has laws against it, how is it not?
> Unless you're in the EU

I am in the EU

I'm not an expert on the GDPR (and I'm frankly sick of hearing about it) but surely what it bans is tracking cookies, and not cookies necessary for the proper function of the website?
Exactly, it regulates collection of PII, which includes most tracking cookies.

It doesn't really regulate "refusing service due to disabling of browser features", but then again it's a complex law, so someone (even a court) might argue otherwise, but it's doubtful.

That's one way of complying with GDPR. It's as legal as a paywall.