It’s finally happened: Meta, the company formerly known as Facebook, has been hit with a formal suspension order requiring it to stop exporting European Union user data to the US for processing.
Today the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) announced that Meta has been fined €1.2 billion (close to $1.3BN) — which the Board confirmed is the largest fine ever issued under the bloc’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). (The prior record goes to Amazon which was stung for $887M for misusing customers data for ad targeting back in 2021.)
Meta’s sanction is for breaching conditions set out in the pan-EU regulation governing transfers of personal data to so-called third countries (in this case the US) without ensuring adequate protections for people’s information.
European judges have previously found US surveillance practices conflict with EU privacy rights.
In a press release announcing today’s decision the EDPB’s chair, Andrea Jelinek, said:
The EDPB found that Meta IE’s [Ireland’s] infringement is very serious since it concerns transfers that are systematic, repetitive and continuous. Facebook has millions of users in Europe, so the volume of personal data transferred is massive. The unprecedented fine is a strong signal to organisations that serious infringements have far-reaching consequences.
https://techcrunch.com/2023/05/22/facebook-eu-us-data-flows-decision/
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