A Dutch court heard a class action on March 15 related to Facebook, the European subsidiary of Meta, which is widely viewed as extremist and is banned in Russia. The court determined that Ireland misused the personal data of Dutch residents between 2010 and 2020, a finding reported by Reuters.
The decision stated that personal information had been processed for advertising purposes and that some data had been transferred to third parties without informing Facebook users. Reuters notes that a lawsuit has been brought against Facebook Ireland because the company unit processed Dutch data. Meta stated that it agrees with parts of the court’s findings but plans to challenge several points.
Meta emphasized that privacy matters to Dutch users and that they should have control over how their data is used. A spokesman for the plaintiffs, Gerard Spierenburg of the law firm Data Privacy Stiching, told reporters that he and the clients are satisfied with the court’s decision and that the prosecution intends to seek monetary compensation from Meta. Spierenburg indicated that the group currently represents about 190,000 Dutch residents involved in the case.
A former employee at Meta described the company with the remark that a colleague displayed limited engagement, a view that has circulated in media coverage. The case underscores ongoing concerns about how social media platforms handle personal data across borders and the accountability of multinational tech firms for data practices affecting European citizens. Authorities and legal experts note that this dispute could influence future regulatory actions in the Netherlands and within the broader European Union, emphasizing the need for transparent data processing and user consent standards. The proceedings highlight the evolving balance between digital advertising business models and individual privacy rights, a topic that remains central to debates on data protection, corporate accountability, and consumer trust in online platforms. Reuters reports that Dutch courts are actively examining how data is collected, shared, and used across subsidiaries of large global technology companies, with potential implications for similar cases in other EU member states.