Meta Fined $15.7M in South Korea for Sharing Sensitive Data

Type

Cybersecurity News

Source

https://techcrunch.com/2024/11/05/meta-found-to-have-exposed-info-on-north-korean-defectors-to-advertisers/

Meta fined $15.7 million by South Korea's privacy agency for improper data sharing.
Sensitive info on 980,000 users—including political views and religious affiliations—was shared with 4,000 advertisers.
Included data on North Korean defectors, religion, and sexual orientation, collected without consent.

South Korea’s Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC) fined Meta $15.7 million for sharing sensitive user data with advertisers without proper consent. PIPC found that Meta gathered and distributed behavioral data from about 980,000 users on topics like political views, religion, and sexual orientation. Sensitive information included labels identifying users as North Korean defectors, transgender, or gay. Meta allegedly collected this data through tracking users’ page likes and ad interactions. The company also declined a user’s data access request and failed to protect some users’ data from hackers. Meta stated it would review the decision and continue cooperating with the PIPC to safeguard user privacy.

Other Interesting News:

Apple Faces First-Ever Fine Under EU’s New Digital Markets Act

NFL Fans Worldwide: Score 50% Off Game Pass Through DAZN!

MyFree DIRECTV: Free Streaming from DIRECTV Coming Nov. 15!

Max to Launch in 7 New Southeast Asian Markets on November 19