Meta fined $15 million in South Korea for illegally collecting user data

The South Korean industry regulator fined the American company Meta✴ Platforms 21.62 billion won ($15.67 million) for collecting confidential user data and then transferring it to advertisers without having the right to do so. The Reuters news agency writes about this with reference to a statement by the Personal Data Protection Commission of South Korea.

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According to the source, the American technology giant collected information about approximately 980 thousand South Korean users of the social network Facebook✴, including data on their religious preferences, political views, etc. At the same time, Meta✴ did not receive explicit permission from users to collect and process data, which became the reason for the punishment. About 4 thousand advertisers used the information collected in this way.

«Meta✴ was found to be analyzing user behavior data, including the pages they viewed and the advertisements they clicked on on Facebook✴. The company also created and managed advertising profiles associated with sensitive information,” the regulator said in a statement. Official representatives of Meta✴ do not comment on this issue.

According to the department, Meta✴ classified users into different categories. In particular, separate groups were created for defectors from North Korea who profess a certain religion and adhere to certain life paradigms and views. In addition, Meta✴ improperly denied user requests to access personal information and failed to prevent the leak of personal information of several South Korean residents.