Why it is good news for your privacy that Facebook’s owner has been hit with a record fine over data

Wait, so is the EU attempting to break up the internet?

According to the former deputy prime minister, Sir Nick Clegg, who once led one of Britain’s more pro-European political parties, the world wide web “risks being carved up into national and regional silos” as a result of Europe’s regulators.

“At a time where the internet is fracturing under pressure from authoritarian regimes, like-minded democracies should work together to promote and defend the idea of the open internet.”

Sir Nick, you may recall, is president of global affairs at Meta, Facebook’s owner, these days. The tub-thumping statement has been put out in the wake of his employer being whacked with a record-breaking €1.2bn (£1bn) fine from the Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) over the transfer of European citizens’ data to the US and the privacy concerns this has raised.

“Despite acknowledging we had acted in good faith and that a fine was unjustified, the DPC was overruled at the last minute by the European Data Protection Board,” fulminated Sir Nick.

Yes, OK, but that line merits a closer look. Ireland has, after all, made great efforts to cultivate big tech, with low tax rates as your starter for 10. This has been very successful. It’s why Meta and several other big techs have their headquarters there.

As such, the views of the European Data Protection Board are, in this case, rather more pertinent to the issue at hand. Andrea Jelinek, its chair, said: “Meta Ireland’s infringement is very serious since it concerns transfers that are systematic, repetitive and continuous.

“Facebook has millions of users in Europe, so the volume of personal data transferred is massive. The unprecedented fine is a strong signal to organisations that serious infringements have far-reaching consequences.”

The backdrop to this is, as you might expected, rather involved. Europe is uncomfortable with its citizens data being kicked across the Atlantic. Mechanisms to allow the legal transfer of personal data between the two, and the protection of Europeans’ privacy, have been attempted – and then contested – and then they have fallen apart.

The latest was the “Privacy Shield”, which was struck down by the European Court of Justice, the EU’s top court, in 2020. Changes introduced by Meta Ireland in response to the ruling were found by regulators not to have addressed “the risks to the fundamental rights and freedoms” of such transfers.

True, they took place on the basis of contractual clauses endorsed by the European Commission. But it’s the regulator’s view that counts, and it decided they did not go far enough. It is the arbiter here, although the ruling will inevitably be appealed and the legal battle will continue.

But so will the pressure for stricter controls. This is the problem facing Meta. It can moan and complain as much as it likes, but those controls are popular. People are increasingly uncomfortable with the way their personal information is being handled by companies across the board. Those concerns are only going to increase.

It would be better for Meta to try to play nice and get ahead of this. But companies do find that rather hard to do, especially big ones more accustomed to being indulged and coddled, with access to expensive lawyers.

There is a rather wider point to be made here and it is this: there is a widespread perception that entitled “big tech” has too much power. Power that it is prepared to deploy far too freely in the eyes of some.

The EU action is welcome not just because of the very understandable concerns people have about privacy and the way their data is treated. It is also welcome because someone has finally had the gumption to stand up and say “no”.

That matters. Sir Nick talked about democracy in Meta’s statement. It is high time his employer, and companies like it, were brought under greater oversight. If this is a sign of that happening, then so much the better.