Facebook: We don’t need your consent!

The world’s largest social network believes it has found a way to bypass Europe’s strict privacy laws. In yesterday’s proceedings before the Vienna Regional Court (Landesgericht für Zivilrechtssachen), Facebook openly admitted that it has been collecting and processing data without users’ consent since the introduction of the GDPR on May 25, 2018. Download PDF According to the GDPR, in addition to consent, there is also the possibility of processing data for the “performance of a contract” (Article 6(1)(b) GDPR). Facebook now claims to have concluded such an “advertising contract” with users who, according to Facebook, have ordered “personalized advertising” when they signed up to the new terms and conditions on May 25, 2018. Katharina Raabe-Stuppnig (plaintiff’s lawyer): “Facebook now says that they do not need consent for the use of the data because users ordered this advertising. Advertising on Facebook is now supposed to be an important part of the ‘service promise’. It’s as if use