Facebook owner Meta faces an EU ban on targeted advertising. The European Commission, which is in charge of data protection, decided on Wednesday to extend the prohibition on “behavioral advertising” on Facebook and Instagram, which was already in effect in Norway, a non-EU nation, to all 30 EU and EA members.
The owner of the two social media platforms, U.S. software company Meta Platforms (META.O), has resisted efforts to limit the practice. Hence, restricting such advertising, which targets users by harvesting their data, is a setback.
According to the Norwegian data regulation, Meta might face fines of 4% of its worldwide revenue.
The European Data Protection Board (EDPB) stated in a statement to Reuters that the judgment is an order to the data regulator in Ireland, the location of Meta’s European headquarters, to put a permanent ban on the business’s use of behavioral advertising within two weeks.
“On October 27, the EDPB adopted an urgent binding decision … to impose a ban on the processing of personal data for behavioral advertising on the legal basis of contract and legitimate interest across the entire European Economic Area,” it stated.
On Wednesday, Meta announced that to comply with legal obligations, it had previously promised to provide a subscription model in November and to give customers in the EU and EEA the chance to consent.
“EDPB members have been aware of this plan for weeks, and we were already fully engaged with them to arrive at a satisfactory outcome for all parties,” stated a representative for the firm.
“This development unjustifiably ignores that careful and robust regulatory process.” Since August 7, Meta has been fined one million crowns ($90,000) every day in Norway for violating users’ privacy by utilizing their data—such as whereabouts or browsing habits—for advertising, a practice that is typical of Big Tech.
Since its fine was exclusive to Norway, the data regulator, Datatilsynet, said in September that it had forwarded the continuing penalty to the European regulator.
The fine is set to expire on November 3, but Tobias Judin, the head of Datatilsynet’s foreign division, warns Meta that it may face a considerably larger financial penalty.
“Since we now will get a permanent ban, non-compliance with the EU/EEA-wide ban would in itself be a violation of the GDPR, which could be sanctioned with up to 4% of global turnover,” Judin stated to Reuters. The EU’s laws governing information privacy are the General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR.
Norway is a member of the European Single Market, even though it is not an EU member. According to Datatilsynet, the ruling impacts almost 250 million Facebook and Instagram users in Europe.
