Newsletter SOMI - February 5th, 2026
This is the newsletter for February 2026 from the Foundation for Market Information Research to its relations, including the participants in its actions, its sympathizers, media professionals and app users.
Feb Thu 05 2026
Localhost Tracking – Call for Submissions
Recently, several apps were exposed for abusing “localhost tracking” to monitor users’ browsing activity for targeted content and advertising. These apps secretly tracked users’ online behavior on their devices, linking this data back to personal identities. This allowed these companies to see what users searched for, what websites they visited, and even what purchases they made; all tied to their app account.
What is localhost tracking?
Localhost tracking is the practice of monitoring, logging, or analyzing activity on your own device (e.g. phone, tablet, laptop) rather than over the public internet. Depending on the context, it may track:
Page visits on a local web app
API requests and responses
User actions e.g. clicks or form submissions
Network traffic between local services
It is common practice among software development, debugging, testing, or security. However, some companies abuse it to spy on users, bypassing privacy settings such as incognito mode, VPNs, or even when the users logged out of apps. In some cases, their behavior is similar to malware.
SOMI is looking for individuals who have evidence of being subjected to localhost tracking. Please submit your evidence to: welcome@somi.nl.
The first 20 valid submissions will receive €500 in SOMI Litigation Certificates.
Help us hold companies accountable and protect online privacy.
Upcoming
Oral hearing collective damage lawsuit against X in Germany
On February 5th, 2025, SOMI has initiated a collective damage claim in Germany against X (formerly Twitter) for abusing its data power to manipulate political opinions and undermine democracy. The lawsuit alleges that X uses sensitive personal data including political views, health information, and religious beliefs for targeted content. Moreover, past data breaches have exposed millions of X users to identity theft and government surveillance.
The oral hearing is scheduled on Monday, March 2nd, at the Kammergericht in Berlin. SOMI is represented by the law firm Spirit Legal in Germany.
German citizens and residents can still join the lawsuit by registering with the Federal Ministry of Justice, via this link, free of charge. Alternatively, registration with SOMI is available for €7.50 to support our campaigns against Big Tech across Europe.
News
EU Commission investigates X's recommender systems and Grok AI under the Digital Services Act
On January 26th, 2026, the European Commission announced a formal investigation against X (formerly Twitter) under the Digital Services Act (DSA). The Commission also extended its ongoing investigation from December 2023 regarding X's compliance with its recommender systems risk management obligations.
The new investigation will assess whether the company properly assessed and mitigated risks associated with the deployment of its AI Grok in the EU. This includes risks related to the dissemination of illegal content such as AI-generated sexually explicit images, including content that contributes to child sexual abuse material.
The Commission will further investigate whether X complies with its DSA obligations to assess and mitigate systemic risks, including of the dissemination of illegal content, negative effects in relation to gender-based violence, and serious negative consequences to physical and mental health stemming from the introduction of the AI Grok into its platform.