Facebook’s parent company has been ordered to pay over $15 million for illegally collecting sensitive information
South Korea has slapped social media giant Meta with a multi-million-dollar fine after an investigation by the country’s privacy watchdog revealed the company had collected sensitive user data and shared it with thousands of advertisers.
The country’s Personal Information Protection Commission said in a statement on Tuesday that the US company had obtained information from about 980,000 South Korean Facebook users on issues such as their religion, political views and sexuality, while having failed to seek their agreement.
According to the statement, Meta analyzed the pages that Facebook users liked or the advertisements they clicked on. The company then categorized ads to identify users interested in topics such as specific religions, same-sex and transgender issues, as well as information related to North Korean escapees. The…
