Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Mobile
  3. News

Facebook is in hot water again with the European Union for its privacy settings

Lulu Chang
By

Facebook-CEO-Mark-Zuckerberg
Frederic Legrand/Shutterstock
First, the not-for-profit branch of Mark Zuckerberg’s Internet.org was accused of violating Net neutrality standards. But now, Zuckerberg’s pet project is the least of Facebook’s concerns, as the social media giant faces the wrath of the European Union, which is currently investigating whether Facebook’s privacy settings are in violation of the EU’s code.

“Platforms like Facebook have grown quickly to become global forces. But with that size comes responsibility.”

Recommended Videos

The company’s rapid expansion and enormous database of user data has raised significant questions regarding the legitimacy of Facebook’s practices, particularly when it comes to shutting out competition. The EU is growing increasingly skeptical, as Facebook attempts to keep its users in its ecosystem with the addition of more and more functionality to its platform, from messaging and advertising, to payments.

Related

Facebook is by no means the first American tech company to be dinged for such practices, but unfortunately, Zuckerberg and his colleagues don’t seem to have learned from history. As the New York Times reports, Intel, Microsoft, and Google have all previously come under fire for violating strict European privacy laws and regulations. Seeing as Facebook handles a staggering amount of data, it comes as no surprise that it is just the latest in a long line of tech companies to be pulled into court (again).

In the last five years, Facebook’s presence in Europe has nearly doubled, and according to eMarketer, the social network now has more users in that region than in the United States. With Facebook’s recent purchase of the messaging service WhatsApp, many European watchdog organizations are calling foul play. The combination of Facebook Messenger with WhatsApp seemed to create a virtual monopoly on online and mobile messaging, they argued. Facebook won that particular battle, but it seems that the war is still brewing.

The latest case agains the Internet company examines the controversial use and collection of user data, which has always been a hotspot for debate. This time, if Facebook is found to have broken European protocol, the backlash will be severe, with the potential for hefty fines or even a change in policy. As Serafino Abate, a director at the Center on Regulation in Europe, told the Times, “Platforms like Facebook have grown quickly to become global forces. But with that size comes responsibility.”

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Lulu Chang
Lulu Chang
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Fascinated by the effects of technology on human interaction, Lulu believes that if her parents can use your new app…
The most common Skype problems and how to fix them
best mac apps for small business skype

Skype is an excellent option for video chats with your friends and family or conducting a videoconference call with your colleagues.  However, Skype is not without its bugs, hiccups, and issues that can make getting face-to-face with someone seem like an ordeal. To make things easier on everyone, we've compiled a selection of the most common Skype problems and how to fix them.
Video not working
If you can't get your camera to work or experience issues seeing other's connections, you might as well be using an actual telephone instead of Skype. Thankfully, these issues can usually be resolved with a bit of tinkering on your end, or they may just be service disruptions on Skype's end.

One of the more common problems that crop up is visual issues due to Skype not having access to your PC or phone's camera. For desktop users, open the Skype application and select the Three horizontal dots near the notification bell icon to access the Skype menu. Select Settings > Audio and video. If your picture fails to appear in the Skype camera preview window, you'll know there's a connection issue.

Read more
The most common iPad problems and how to fix them
Several iPads on a table together.

Apple's iPad has consistently marked among the best tablets, and is considered to be a sort of trailblazer in the field in its own right. As a logical result, your first encounters with common tablet glitches are likely to be iPad glitches. If you're not sure what to do to fix your device, that's okay, as you have to start somewhere. Here are some somewhat common problems that we've found plague iPads again and again, as well as some related iPad troubleshooting advice. Take care and read through the issues related to your problem to get started troubleshooting your iPad.

Read more
The 5 best ring lights for phones in 2024
The Lume Cube Ring Light Pro with a phone.

There are lots of different types of ring lights, but they all have the same primary purpose -- provide a steady light source that will illuminate your subject, whether that's an object, another person, or yourself. If you need a ring light for your phone, there's also an overwhelming number of options, so to help you out, we've rounded up the best ring lights for phones right here. We're going to take you through our recommendations, their advantages over other ring lights for phones in the market, and our selection process that resulted in our top five choices below.

Whether you're a travel vlogger, a video game streamer, or any other kind of content creator, and you prefer using your phone over a dedicated camera or webcam, then you should check out the best ring lights for phones that we've gathered here. Even if you're only going to use it for your personal photos and videos, it's always better to have nice lighting that will simply make everything look nicer, especially in low-light environments. Not everyone needs a ring light for their phone, but for those who do, read on to determine the one that would be perfect for you.
The best ring lights for phones in 2024

Read more