Germany Investigates Facebook Over Privacy Protection Laws

Facebook and Europe have been at odds over privacy before, and it seems to be happening again. Last week, Reuters reported that Germany has launched an investigation into the social network. Specifically, Germany’s competition office is investigating Facebook for “suspected abuse of market power over breaches of data protection laws.”

They aim to determine if users are being appropriately informed about the information and personal data that Facebook collects about them. They want to determine if Facebook is violating competition rules, because they earn revenue from ads served based upon the user data they collect. Germany’s investigation will determine if Facebook is in compliance, and if their data collection falls within German anti-trust rules.

Germany is working with the European Union on this matter, and both Germany and the EU have previously criticized Facebook for its privacy protections.  Facebook claims they are in compliance.

At Golden Frog, we warn users to be wary of the data their providers are collecting, and to ensure they understand the privacy policy of all services they use. You can learn more about how companies like Facebook capitalize on your data and make you the product – and how you can protect yourself – in our recent article: You Are the Product: The Price of Free in the Growing Privacy Industry.

Sources: The Guardian and Reuters