Data privacy: Improper handling will lead to legal issues

The development of social media and digital marketing has significantly changed the way we interact through these channels. There is more and more data that companies and platforms require from their customers or users to adapt to their demands and needs.

With this information, Facebook can suggest new friends, Instagram can let you register where you post to, and even some networks can notify you when you need to buy some products from the regular market list. .

Having interesting information about users or customers allows us to know them better in order to offer them better services. It also implies greater responsibility, as the handling of this data must be done responsibly and ethically.

By registering in any social network, the user is aware that he is giving up information about himself. In this sense, you want to receive advertising and somehow speed up your Internet search. However, they are not always fully aware of the scope of data management and the consequences of losing transparency and ethics in this action.

The case of Facebook and Cambridge Analytica

When lines are crossed, the legal consequences can be costly. This is what happened to Facebook, the most popular social network today, when it was taken to court after the demand of the United States and Great Britain to obtain the private information of network users, made by various companies for the development of election campaigns and political propaganda.

The data collected by Facebook fell into the hands of the British consulting firm Cambridge Analytica in 2015 and includes names, phone numbers, email addresses, political and religious affiliations and other interests. It was recorded that the company was able to access the information of more than 80 million users by tagging people in the published photos. All of these photos were scanned by DeepFace, an app that worked to match users to each other and thus determine each person's identity.

The Facebook Analytica case has exposed serious data privacy concerns, especially when misuse of data can lead to international lawsuits. In some situations, an interpol red notice may be issued for individuals involved in data offenses that cross the border. Understanding how red notices work in these contexts is essential to managing the global impact of data privacy breaches.

Will Facebook compensate users?

The possibility that the digital platform should financially compensate the affected users was the decision of a federal judge in California, USA, who recognized a class action by Facebook users, considering the fact to be a violation of the law of the state of Illinois. , where the collection and storage of biometric data without prior consent is a crime.

So far, this is a case related to data security that has gained such legal force. Illinois law provides for fines ranging from $1,000 to $5,000 for each use of a personal image without prior permission.

Some believe that Facebook may have been misleading about the use of the information. However, it has been accused of failing to act responsibly to protect the data of one million users in the United Kingdom and more than 70 million people in the United States. Most of the data was used during the European Union referendum in Britain and the 2016 US presidential election, the plaintiff suggests.
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