It’s not like all of the headwinds Facebook is confronting have died down. Just off a grilling by Congress, CEO Mark Zuckerberg still has many responses to prepare for members.
The stock still is down.
Some celebs are dropping out already.
And the general public is questioning whether or not the social-media platform can be trusted.
Now comes a new case over Facebook’s transfer of personal data from overseas subsidiaries into the United States.
The Electronic Privacy Information Center reports the Irish High Court has sent 11 questions to the European Court of Justice for review in a case called Data Protection Commissioner v. Facebook.
“The case considers whether Facebook’s transfers of data from Ireland to the United States violate the European Charter of Fundamental Rights. The case follows the 2015 landmark decision Schrems v. DPC, which found that the U.S. had insufficient privacy law to protect the personal data of Europeans,” EPIC said.
“The new case examines ‘standard contractual clauses’ and whether the U.S. provides sufficient remedies for privacy violations, whether future data transfers should be suspended, and whether the EU-US ‘Privacy Shield’ matters,” the organization said.
The Irish questions explain that the charter “provides that everyone has the right to respect for his or her private life, home and communication.”
And it provides “that everyone has a right of access to data which has been collected concerning him or her and the right to have it rectified.”
The document explains that authorities can make a finding that a specified third country does not “ensure an adedquate level of protection,” and it can require that a member state takes “the measures necessary to comply with the … decision.”
Schrems, in his case, states his personal data is forwarded by Facebook to Facebook Inc. in the U.S., where his data is processed. Facebook Inc. is obliged to make his personal data available and/or obliged to disclose it to U.S. authorities such as the FBI or NSA.
“He alleges there is no judicial remedy which would allow the data subject to take appropriate action to protect his personal data rights.”
The company has claimed the right to do that.
“Facebook acknowledges that it transfers personal data relating to Facebook’s subscribers resident in the European Union including Mr. Schrems to Facebook Inc. and that it does so, in large part, on the basis that it has adopted the standard contractual clauses set out.”
