FACEBOOK V. CONSUMENTENBOND AND DATA PRIVACY STICHTING

In the Netherlands, the Consumentenbond (Dutch Consumers’ Association) and the Data Privacy Stichting (Dutch Data Privacy Foundation) have entered into a partnership to hold Facebook responsible for violating the privacy of their users. This has manifested itself in the summons of Facebook in which both parties aim to obtain compensation for each user or consumer in the Netherlands.

Why?

The Consumentenbond and the Data Privacy Stichting argue that Facebook has misled its users by presenting the platform as a free service. However, from the point of view of the Consumentenbond and the Stichting, Facebook has collected millions of pieces of data and has made them accessible to third parties unlawfully, which according to them can be categorized as a ‘payment with personal data’. Over the years they collected personal data such as gender, age and place of residence as well as data they shared with friends of their users. In addition, Facebook also collected the app usage and surfing behaviour of their users outside the platform, even sharing data from friends to app developers who did not use these apps and did not have any awareness that this data about them was being shared with these third parties.

According to Sandra Molenaar (director of the Consumentenbond) it is indisputable that “the privacy policy of Facebook was insufficiently clear, inconsistent and unnecessarily difficult”. She therefore argues that Facebook should take further steps in the future in order to avoid a repetition of such practices: “There must be an end to this kind of privacy violations. And from now on Facebook must be crystal clear in its communication to users. They must have full control over their data”.

Join the action

In their battle for compensation for all Facebook users in the Netherlands, the Consumentenbond and the Data Privacy Stichting are looking for users who want to support them with the claim. The greater the support, the greater the impact the actions against Facebook can have. Registration can be done through this link and is completely free of charge.

Are you concerned about the treatment or protection of personal data within your own company or are you unsure whether all the requirements of the privacy legislation have been met? Would you like to avoid being heavily fined in the future? Please contact us. Together we will ensure that you are fully up to date and in compliance with current privacy and data protection regulations.