gdpr
Are Blizzard breaking GDPR by charging people for changing their usernames?
<p>I have had an account with Blizzard for several years now. I changed my username (referred to as a battletag) only once, over a year ago. </p>

<p>I now want to change it again because searching it on Google shows personal info about me that I don't want others to know.</p>

<p>Blizzard charge for changing the username. I contacted them mentioning GDPR, and was told it looks too generic to be personal data, so I would have to pay for a change. Their GDPR contact agreed with this.</p>

<p>Surely it is personal data, because they can search it within their own database and link it to my real name which makes it personal data under GDPR.</p>

<p>Am I not understanding GDPR correctly, or are they violating my rights?</p>

<h2>It’s personal data</h2>

<p><strong>... but why do you think you can change it for free?</strong></p>

<p>It’s clearly personal data because it can be demonstrably linked to you, both within and outside Blizzard’s database. Presumably, you consented Blizzard having it or they have some other legitimate basis for having it. So far, this is all GDPR compliant.</p>

<p>You have a right to be forgotten, so you can ask Blizzard to delete your account. You have a right to confirm the information is correct.</p>

<p>And that’s it.</p>

<p>They can charge you a fee to change your user name just like your government can charge you a fee to change your real name.</p>

<p>The GDPR includes a right to correct incorrect data (Article 16). But (without being a lawyer) I doubt that the change of an user name would be considered a <em>correction</em>.</p>
