Privacy group noyb has filed complaints in four EU countries alleging that Scale AI tracked contractors working on its Outlier platform, which supplies data annotation and evaluation work used to improve AI models. Scale says the allegations are unfounded and that its monitoring practices are disclosed and require contributors’ consent.
Watch Desk analysis
What happened
The Register reports that complaints were filed with data protection authorities in France, Italy, the Netherlands and Austria. They allege that Scale collected biometric identity data and other personal information, and monitored device activity beyond contractors’ Outlier work. Noyb also alleges that data was sent to third parties, including social media and analytics companies, and that Scale did not properly respond to data-access requests.
Noyb argues that the practices lack a legal basis and breach GDPR requirements, including data minimisation. It is asking regulators to investigate and, if appropriate, impose fines. These are allegations in complaints, not findings by regulators. Scale told The Register that Outlier’s practices are disclosed to contributors and that it uses standard tools for identity checks, fraud prevention, protecting confidential project information and accurate payment.
Why it matters
Outlier contractors help label data and evaluate AI-generated responses. The dispute therefore touches the people doing work behind AI systems, as well as the limits on what platforms can collect from them while they work remotely. The complaints raise a concrete question about where legitimate security and payment checks end and monitoring of workers’ wider device activity begins.
Our read
The complaints make this more than a general argument about workplace privacy: they set out specific alleged data collection and tracking practices, while Scale disputes the account. Regulators will have to assess the evidence and the legal basis. Until then, neither the allegations nor the company’s response should be mistaken for an official finding.
What to watch
- Whether the four data protection authorities open investigations or issue decisions.
- What evidence the complaints provide about data collection and activity outside work.
- Whether Scale publishes more detail about what it collects, how long it keeps it and who receives it.
Discussion spark: What monitoring, if any, should a platform be allowed to require on a contractor’s device as a condition of doing AI data work?
Sources and evidence
- EU privacy advocates accuse US data annotation firm of snooping on contractors – The Register (27 October 2026, 17:29 UTC)
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