<https://www.euronews.com/next/2022/02/07/meta-threatens-to-shut-down-facebook-and-instagram-in-europe-over-data-transfer-issues>
Facebook and Instagram may be shut down across Europe, parent company
Meta has said.
The issue comes down to European data regulations that prevent Meta, the
company formerly known as Facebook, from transferring, storing and
processing Europeans’ data on US-based servers.
In its *annual report*
<https://d18rn0p25nwr6d.cloudfront.net/CIK-0001326801/14039b47-2e2f-4054-9dc5-71bcc7cf01ce.pdf>
to the US Securities and Exchange Commission, the country’s financial
authority, Meta warned last Thursday that if no new framework is adopted
and the company could no longer use the current model of agreements it
would probably have to walk away from the continent.
Meta stated that processing user data between countries is crucial for
business and advert targeting.
"If we are unable to transfer data between and among countries and
regions in which we operate, or if we are restricted from sharing data
among our products and services, it could affect our ability to provide
our services, the manner in which we provide our services or our ability
to target ads," the statement read.
Meta clarified that it thinks it will be able to reach a new agreement
this year but if it does not, it stated: "We will likely be unable to
offer a number of our most significant products and services, including
Facebook and Instagram, in Europe".
Meta could previously use a data transfer framework called Privacy
Shield as the legal basis to carry out transatlantic data transfers.
But In July 2020, the European Court of Justice annulled the treaty due
to violations of data protection. The bloc's highest legal authority
argued the standard does not adequately protect European citizens’ privacy.
As a result, US companies were restricted in sending European user data
to the US and have had to rely on SCCs (standard contractual clauses).
The EU and US have said they are working on a new or updated version of
the treaty.
*How has the European Commission reacted?*
"Securing a new arrangement for safe transatlantic data flows is a
priority for us and our US partners," a European Commission spokesperson
told Euronews Next via email.
The negotiations have intensified in the past months, with discussions
at a technical and political level. This includes regular contacts
between Commissioner Reynders and his counterpart, US Secretary for
Commerce, Gina Raimondo, they added.
"Only an arrangement that is fully compliant with the requirements set
by the EU court can deliver the stability and legal certainty
stakeholders expect on both sides of the Atlantic.
"These negotiations take some time, given also the complexity of the
issues discussed and the need to strike a balance between privacy and
national security".
*What has Meta said?*
"We have absolutely no desire and no plans to withdraw from Europe, but
the simple reality is that Meta, and many other businesses,
organisations and services, rely on data transfers between the EU and
the US in order to operate global services," a Meta spokesperson told
Euronews Next in a statement.
Like other companies, Meta said it had followed European rules and
relied on Standard Contractual Clauses, and appropriate data safeguards
to operate a global service.
"Fundamentally, businesses need clear, global rules to protect
transatlantic data flows over the long term, and like more than 70 other
companies across a wide range of industries, we are closely monitoring
the potential impact on our European operations as these developments
progress,” the spokesperson added.
Nick Clegg, Meta’s Vice President of Global Affairs, argued in 2020
Europe without Facebook and Instagram would be detrimental to a lot of
businesses in the EU.
"Thousands of European and US businesses rely on the safe and legal
transfer of data between jurisdictions. International data transfers
underpin the global economy and support many of the services that are
fundamental to our daily lives," Clegg said in a *statement*
<https://about.fb.com/news/2020/09/securing-the-long-term-stability-of-cross-border-data-flows/>.
Last week, Meta’s financial report saw its stock plummet by 25 per cent
after the social media giant lost daily active users for the first time
in its history.
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