A German court on Friday ordered the U.S. company Meta to pay 5,000 euros to a Facebook user for violating European data protection rules, in a decision that paves the way for more complaints.
A statement issued by the Leipzig Regional Court in eastern Germany stated that the 'high’ fine is due to Meta's “serious violation of European data protection law” through its “commercial” tools designed to identify Facebook users, thus realizing billions of dollars through targeted advertising.
According to the court, this practice violates European law because it leads to near-permanent surveillance of users' private lives, even when they are not using their Facebook or Instagram accounts, which are owned by Meta.
Unlike other jurisdictions in Germany, the Leipzig court did not apply national privacy law, but only European law.
Meta may appeal this decision to the Dresden Regional Court in eastern Germany.
The Leipzig judge noted that the US giant's European platform, based in Ireland, systematically transfers private data to countries around the world, including the U.S., where it is exploited on a “scale unknown to the user.”
The court said it “recognizes” that the decision “may encourage many Facebook users to file lawsuits without proving specific individual harm.”
It added that the European rules cited in the ruling “are specifically aimed at ensuring effective data protection, through private actions before civil courts, beyond purely administrative proceedings.”
Meta also announced that it would challenge a record €200 million fine imposed by the European Commission in April for non-compliance with personal data rules, calling the penalty “incorrect and unlawful.”
In Europe, Meta has to seek users' consent to integrate data from its services for advertising purposes. Therefore, it offers a paid subscription without ads or a free subscription that allows data sharing.
Brussels has ruled that this “pay or consent” option has an injunctive character for users.
In Germany, Meta, like other tech giants (Alphabet/Google, Amazon and Apple), is considered dominant in its market by the German Competition Office, making it subject to possible additional penalties.
AFP