Facebook to face 100,000 Euro Fine for Keeping Archives of Deleted Data

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Facebook seems to own your information to the extent that even Facebook data you have deleted will still live on in some obscure server owned by Facebook. But Facebook might get into trouble for this, as recent events have shown.

The Guardian has run an article about Facebook possibly facing a fine of 100,000 Euro (or $187,980) if Irish authorities decide that the company has breached user privacy by storing data even if these have already been deleted. Prompted by reports that one could order an archive of Facebook data for one’s own user profile, Austrian law student Max Schrems acquired his own archive, and found out that the social network kept 1,200 pages of personal information, most of which have been deleted.

I discovered Facebook had kept highly personal messages I had written and then deleted, which, were they to become public, could be highly damaging to my reputation.

Schrems says the information included wall posts, photos, comments, and various actions, including “unfriending” other users, de-tagging images and pokes. The record also shows each and every time he has logged in, from which IP address, and details about the computer and web browser used.

The complainant says he is aware that Facebook is not actually doing anything criminal with these personal data, but in the event that the information gets into the wrong hands — such as when there is a privacy breach, or if hackers actively break into the system — his data will be compromised.

Facebook says it simply provided the complainant with the information requested.

It included requests for information on a range of other things that are not personal information, including Facebook’s proprietary fraud protection measures, and ‘any other analytical procedure that Facebook runs.’

The complaint has been lodged with the Irish data protection commissioner, since Facebook runs its EU office from Ireland. The commissioner’s office has confirmed that it will audit the social network and the complaint, and will determine if there has been a breach of privacy, which carries a fine of 100,000 Euro at most.