South Korea has imposed a fine of over $15 million on Facebook's parent company, Meta, for illegally gathering and sharing sensitive user data without consent, according to the country's data protection authority.
The firm, which also owns Instagram, violated laws that prohibit the use of information related to political views, religious beliefs, and personal life details unless explicit consent is obtained, the Seoul Personal Information Protection Commission stated.
Meta collected sensitive data from approximately 980,000 users in South Korea through their Facebook profiles, including details about their religious beliefs and sexual orientation. The watchdog confirmed that this information was shared with advertisers, with around 4,000 advertisers utilizing it.
Officials revealed that Meta analyzed user behavior data, such as pages liked and ads clicked, to create targeted advertisements related to sensitive topics like transgender issues, homosexuality, and North Korean defectors.
The commission fined Meta 21.6 billion won ($15.6 million) and ordered the company to establish legal grounds for processing sensitive information, implement safety measures, and handle user requests for personal data access.
This decision underscores the importance of ensuring that global service providers comply with South Korea's data protection laws regarding sensitive information processing.
Source link: https://www.khaleejtimes.com
