An Amsterdam court ruled Facebook acted unlawfully when handling the personal data of its users in the Netherlands for nearly a decade.
(Bloomberg) — An Amsterdam court ruled Facebook acted unlawfully when handling the personal data of its users in the Netherlands for nearly a decade.
Personal data processed by Meta Platforms Inc.’s Facebook Ireland unit were used without permission for advertising purposes and were also given to third parties without properly informing users, according to the Wednesday ruling.
The court found that from April 2010 to January 2020, Facebook Ireland had no legal basis for processing special personal data such as sexual orientation or religion for advertising purposes. Dutch class-action organization Data Privacy Stichting brought the case against three Meta companies with the support of Consumentenbond, a Netherlands-based consumer rights association.
The Amsterdam court limited its ruling to the actions of Facebook Ireland because this company alone is responsible for processing personal data of Dutch Facebook users, it said. The court ruled the placement of cookies on third-party websites was not unlawful and said no damages can yet be claimed from Meta.
The ruling sends “a very strong signal” to other tech companies that flout privacy laws, Consumentenbond Director Sandra Molenaar said in a statement. The organizations want to have discussions with Facebook about compensating consumers, Data Privacy Stichting President Dick Bouma said.
Meta said it plans to appeal some aspects of the case. “We’re pleased that the court has ruled in favor of Meta for multiple of these historic claims, some of which took place over a decade ago,” Kim van Bokhoven, a Meta spokesperson, said in an emailed comment. The company wants its Dutch users to have control over how their data is used, Van Bokhoven said.
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