The Irish Commission has imposed two fines on the Facebook owner for violating the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which involves a €210m fine relating to its Facebook service and €180m fine for its Instagram service
Facebook parent Meta has been fined by the Irish DPC. (Credit: Firmbee from Pixabay)
Meta Platforms Ireland has been fined €390m by the Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) following the conclusion of two inquiries into the firm’s data processing activities related to the provision of its Facebook and Instagram services.
The Irish watchdog imposed the fines on the Facebook owner for violating the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). The first fine is €210m relating to its Facebook service and the second of €180m pertains to its Instagram service.
Besides, the regulator has asked Meta to bring its data processing operations into compliance within a three-month period.
The investigation into the Meta services was raised after two complaints were filed in May 2018, when the GDPR came into operation.
To be in compliance with GDPR, Meta Ireland modified the terms of service for its Facebook and Instagram services.
The parent company of Facebook urged users to click ‘I accept’ to confirm that they were in agreement with the terms of service updates, outlining how their data would be used in advertisements.
Users were not able to access Facebook or Instagram services if they declined.
The complainants alleged that in doing so, Meta was forcing their consent to the processing of their personal data for behavioural advertising and other customised services, which is allegedly a violation of the GDPR.
Following the investigation, the Irish DPC concluded that Meta users were not provided with sufficient information about the processing operations used on their personal data and the intended purpose of it.
The Commission stated: “Accordingly, the DPC’s decisions include findings that Meta Ireland is not entitled to rely on the “contract” legal basis in connection with the delivery of behavioural advertising as part of its Facebook and Instagram services, and that its processing of users’ data to date, in purported reliance on the “contract” legal basis, amounts to a contravention of Article 6 of the GDPR.”