Italy Slams Meta with Record €805M Fine Over User Photos

Italian data privacy authority Garante has levied a substantial fine of 805 million euros against Meta. This penalty stems from the unauthorized access of Italian users' photos on Android devices by the Facebook application. The feature in question accessed photos, videos, and associated metadata without obtaining specific user consent or providing adequate notification.

The authority found that the 'Get suggestions from gallery when browsing Facebook' feature violated Italian law implementing the EU's ePrivacy directive. Consent collection was deemed too generic, and the suggestion option was enabled by default, preventing users from fully understanding the permissions granted. Roughly 20 million Italian Android users may have been affected.

Garante highlighted Meta's lack of cooperation and a previous violation in 2019 as factors contributing to the size of the fine. The imposed amount represents approximately 0.47 percent of Meta's global turnover. Meta has the right to appeal the decision, and the proceedings did not address potential AI training data usage.