Meta, the company that runs Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram, was fined over €250 million because of a data breach. This breach affected about 29 million Facebook accounts worldwide, with around 3 million of those accounts in the EU/EEA. The problem was reported by Meta back in September 2018.
The personal information that got exposed included users’ full names, email addresses, phone numbers, work locations, birth dates, religions, genders, posts, and even information about their kids. Unauthorized people took advantage of user tokens on Facebook to access this data. Though Meta fixed the issue quickly in Ireland and the US, the damage was already done.
The Irish Data Protection Commission decided to fine Meta €251 million due to this serious problem. Graham Doyle, a Deputy Commissioner, said that the breach created a big risk of misuse of people’s information. He stressed the importance of having data protection in place right from the start to keep individuals safe. The breach allowed unauthorized people to view sensitive details like users’ political or religious beliefs, which could lead to significant risks.
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