The Norwegian Data Protection Authority decreed that Facebook and Instagram are prohibited from using tracking data to serve personalized ads to users in Norway, beginning in August.
Meta’s current advertising methods on both platforms involve utilizing sensitive, private personal data, procured through intrusive monitoring and profiling, according to Datatilsynet, Norway’s data protection agency.
Beginning August 4, this three-month ban will prevent the use of so-called behavioral advertising. Facebook and Instagram will still be able to display customized ads, but these will only be based on data shared by users in their profile’s “about” section.
A penalty of 1 million Norwegian Krone (around €89,500) per day will be levied on Meta if it fails to obey this directive. The ban might be revoked if Meta can provide a lawful method to handle personal data, as well as offer users the option to opt out of targeted ads dependent on track.
The limitation follows a ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union on July 4, which found Meta guilty of unauthorized data collection for targeted advertising, without explicit user consent and under the banner of “legitimate interest.”
Furthermore, Meta is also under investigation by its primary privacy regulator, the Irish Data Protection Commission, concerning its advertising tactics.
Earlier this year in January, the Dublin-based authority fined Meta a hefty €390 million for violating European privacy laws.
The commission has instructed Meta to identify a new legal foundation for its business model, a decision against which the tech company has appealed.
The Irish Data Protection Commission is set to make a decision regarding Meta’s legal basis for its targeted advertising techniques by mid-August at the latest, according to Deputy Commissioner and Spokesperson Graham Doyle.
