Meta has been hit with a €1.2 billion fine, following a decision by the Irish Data Protection Commissioner (DPC) that it’s been transferring data to the US unlawfully.
Meta has been hit with a €1.2 billion fine, following a decision by the Irish Data Protection Commissioner (DPC) that it’s been transferring data to the US unlawfully.
The penalty is the largest ever to be imposed for breaches to the GDPR, and relates to Meta’s transfers of personal data to the U.S. on the basis of standard contractual clauses (SCCs) since 16 July 2020.
The decision relates to Meta’s behavior following a decision from the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in a case brought by campaigner Max Schrems following whistleblower Edward Snowden’s revelations that US authorities were accessing data from social media.
Using SCCs to facilitate data transfers, say the DPC and the European Data Protection Board (EDPB), fails to adequately protect European personal data.
„The EDPB found that Meta IE’s infringement is very serious since it concerns transfers that are systematic, repetitive and continuous,“ says Andrea Jelinek, chair of the EDPB.
