Security News > 2020 > June > German Court Orders Facebook to Rein in Data Collection
A top German court on Tuesday ordered Facebook to stop merging data collected through its Whatsapp and Instagram subsidiaries or other websites unless users explicitly agree, in a legal victory for competition authorities.
Germany's Federal Cartel Office had told Facebook to rein in the data collecting in a landmark decision in 2019, but the social media giant appealed the order.
In a fast-track proceeding on Tuesday, Germany's Federal Court of Justice sided with the FCO watchdog in finding that Facebook was abusing its dominant position to force users to consent to all their data being collected.
Tuesday's fast-tracked decision at the BGH was aimed at settling a row about whether Facebook can keep combining data in the meantime.
In one major scandal in 2018, it emerged that data belonging to tens of millions of Facebook users had been harvested by consulting firm Cambridge Analytica, and used in part to support Donald Trump's 2016 election campaign.