Causes.com
| 5.25.23

Meta Hit With Record Fine for Data Protection Violations

Should the U.S. have a version of GDPR?  

What's the story?

  • Meta was found guilty of violating Europe's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) laws and fined 1.2 billion euros, equivalent to USD 1.3 billion. 
  • The ruling from Ireland's Data Protection Commission (DPC) marks one of the most significant penalties since the European Union enacted the data protection laws five years ago.
  • Meta has also been ordered to cease data transfer from Facebook users in Europe to the U.S.
  • In a statement, Meta announced its decision to appeal the ruling.

What happens to Facebook?

  • The DPC gave Meta six months to stop processing and storing personal data that was transferred in violation of the GDPR. Meta may have to delete large amounts of Facebook users' data in the EU. 
  • In response, Meta argues that it's been unfairly targeted for widely-used data-sharing practices, emphasizing that thousands of organizations depend on data transfers between the EU and the U.S. to provide everyday services.
  • Nick Clegg, Meta's president of global affairs, and Jennifer G. Newstead, the company's chief legal officer, said in the statement:

"Without the ability to transfer data across borders, the internet risks being carved up into national and regional silos, restricting the global economy and leaving citizens in different countries unable to access many of the shared services we have come to rely on."

What is GDPR?

  • Europe's GDPR is the strictest privacy and security law in the world. It took effect in 2018 and mandates any organization processing the personal data of EU citizens/residents to adhere to seven principles.

The seven principles of GDPR include:

  • Processing must be lawful, fair, and transparent to the data subject.
  • Data must be processed for legitimate purposes specified explicitly to the data subject when collected. 
  • Organizations should only collect and process as much data as absolutely necessary for the purposes specified.
  • Personal data must be kept accurate and up to date.
  • Personally identifying data must only be stored for as long as necessary for the specified purpose.
  • Processing must be done to ensure appropriate security, integrity, and confidentiality (e.g., by using encryption).
  • The data controller is responsible for being able to demonstrate GDPR compliance with all of these principles.

 

What do you think? Should the U.S. have a version of GDPR?

 

-Laura Woods

(Photo credit: Unsplash) 

  • 93.9k
    LeslieG
    Voted Yes
    05/26/2023

    Thanks to Europe's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) laws and recent fine of $1.3B, Meta will need to change the product and how they do business which will benefit us all as I don't think Meta will want to maintain multiple products, one for the EU and one for everyone else given most tech companies don't even want to support more than 2 previous product releases fircingeveryone to upgrade software versions fr applications ad system software.

    But just in case Meta or other tech companies drag their feet on this, the US should have similar regulations, similar to how the FDA has harmonized drug laws with Europe and rest of the world.

  • 2,597
    530 East Hunt Highway
    Voted Maybe
    05/26/2023

    So can anyone of 5he Causes readers or staff explain in layman's terms "General Data Protection Regulation"? Yet you want to get people's opinion......do readers understand why your polling? Why you polls are always push polls? Do they know what a push poll is?

    0
    Today at 9:01 PM
  • 48.0k
    Brian
    Voted Yes
    05/30/2023

    What a surprise! Meta (formerly Facebook) is guilty of once again misusing customer data! 

    I support fines for any corporate negligence or abuse of data, so I'm glad to see this. 

    It's time for these tech companies to take data privacy seriously and make plans to comply with GDPR or any other applicable regulations in other countries. I hope our goverment will also finally put more protections in place before Meta sells us out to the highest bidder.

  • 1,806
    Shari
    Voted Yes
    05/27/2023

    The only reason that the US does not have privacy protections is that corporations own lawmakers. This subversion of democracy needs to be stopped.

  • 13.3k
    MrGeer
    Voted Yes
    05/26/2023

    absolutly.

    In the U.S. we only seem to protect the exploiter class. We need better regulation.

  • 3,697
    Kevin
    Voted Yes
    05/26/2023

    We are people, not just consumers.

  • 1,714
    Lesley
    Voted Yes
    05/26/2023

    Accountability is always imperative.

  • 1,051
    ClydeK
    Voted Yes
    05/26/2023

    There are so many critical areas where the USA lags Europe!  This is a critical area!  The social media companies are only concerned about one thing: expanding their bottom line!!  They are doing that by reckless disregard of all the personal information that is on their sites.  This data should be treated with the same regard as our most vital national security secrets!!  We need laws and regulations to protect this information!!

  • 2,934
    Gdbondii
    Voted Yes
    05/26/2023

    Some one needs to regulate them

  • 2,412
    Martha
    Voted Yes
    05/26/2023

    Europe is doing it right with their laws that put guardrails in place when it comes to social media.  We need to do the same.  Protection of the users should be a priority and without regulations the social media companies will ignore people's rights and put profit above people.