Meta data tracking lawsuit overview:
- Who: Tanya O’Carroll filed a lawsuit against Meta Platforms Ireland Ltd.
- Why: O’Carroll claims Meta violates privacy laws in the United Kingdom and European Union by allegedly denying Facebook users the ability to opt out of having their personal data used for direct marketing purposes.
- Where: The lawsuit was filed in the High Court of Justice of England and Wales.
Meta Platforms Ireland violates the data privacy rights of Europeans by using the personal data of its Facebook users for the purposes of direct marketing and targeted advertising, a new lawsuit alleges.
Plaintiff Tanya O’Carroll, a human rights advocate, claims Meta violates privacy laws, including the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation, by allegedly denying her “right to object” to the use of her personal data.
O’Carroll argues Meta refuses to honor its Facebook users’ requests to stop tracking their online activity so that it can profit off the data it collects through targeted advertising.
Meta allegedly collects its users’ age, gender and device location, as well as their activity on the platform, including the content they interact with, according to the Meta lawsuit.
Plaintiff looks to ‘set a precedent’ in Meta data tracking lawsuit
O’Carroll brings her complaint against Meta as an individual action; however, she asserts that winning the dispute could “set a precedent” for millions of social media users in the EU and UK whom she says “have been forced to accept invasive surveillance and profiling to use digital platforms.”
“We shouldn’t have to give up every detail of our personal lives just to connect with friends and family online,” O’Carroll says in a statement. “The law gives us the right to take back control over our personal data and stop Facebook surveilling and tracking us.”
In related Meta news, in January, a senior adviser to Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority, filed a class action against Facebook, claiming the company abused its market dominance and exploited the personal data it made its users give to them.
What do you think of the Meta data tracking lawsuit? Let us know in the comments!
Plaintiff is represented by Ravi Naik of AWO.
The Meta data tracking lawsuit is O’Carroll, et al. v. Meta Platforms Ireland Ltd., Case No. KB-2022-004365, in the High Court of Justice of England and Wales.
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