The National Times - Italy Fines Meta $880 Million Over Facebook Photo Access Violations

Italy’s data protection authority has imposed a fine of 805 million euros ($880 million) on Meta for accessing Facebook users’ photographs and videos without obtaining specific consent. The regulator determined that the company failed to adequately inform or secure explicit permission from approximately 20 million Android users in Italy regarding its gallery suggestions feature.

The authority stated that the Facebook application for Android devices accessed photos, videos, and related metadata belonging to Italian users without adequate notification or explicit permission. The penalty relates specifically to Meta’s gallery suggestions feature, which was introduced in 2023 and recommends photos and videos stored on users’ phones as potential content for posts.

According to the regulator, Meta sought permission to access users’ galleries through a general authorization covering the entire application. The accompanying notice did not clearly explain that enabling other features would also allow Facebook to suggest content from their personal galleries. Consequently, the authority ordered Meta to obtain separate consent for the feature, clearly explain how it works, and provide users with information on how to disable it.

The regulator considered the number of people involved, the duration of the infringement, and Meta’s lack of cooperation during the investigation when calculating the penalty. The fine represents approximately 0.4 percent of Meta’s annual turnover.

Meta had not responded to requests for comment by Saturday afternoon and may appeal the decision. This latest penalty follows a series of regulatory actions against the technology giant. In late October, authorities in New Mexico ordered Meta to pay $25 billion over allegations that it misled residents for years about its use of their data.

S.O'brien--TNT