Meta disproves sharing data of users with Netflix. A court document reportedly showed that Meta, Facebook’s parent company gave Netflix direct access to direct messages of users on Facebook.
Meta Disproves Sharing Data of Users
The document is part of a lawsuit against Meta filed by Maximilian Klein and Sarah Grabert. They claim that Netflix and Facebook had a special arrangement that allowed Netflix to use Facebook’s user data for targeted advertising.
In May 2023, Meta was fined €1.2 billion ($1.3 billion). This fine is for violating EU data protection rules by transferring user data from Facebook to the US.
The lawsuit alleges that Meta gave Netflix access to user data for ten years, which broke privacy laws. Netflix reportedly paid Meta millions for advertising through this partnership.
Reports suggest that Reed Hastings, a former Netflix co-founder, served on Facebook’s board from 2011 to 2019, giving him direct access to the company’s leaders. Hastings is said to have overseen the partnership, including advertising commitments and data sharing.
During this period, Netflix spent millions on Facebook ads, reaching $40 million annually by February 2015.
Meta Denies the Allegations Placed Before Them
However, Meta denies the allegations. Andy Stone, Meta’s communications director, denied claims that Netflix had access to users’ private messages in a statement on X on April 2, 2024.
According to him, “Shockingly untrue. Meta didn’t share people’s private messages with Netflix. The agreement allowed people to message their friends on Facebook about what they were watching on Netflix directly from the Netflix app. Such agreements are commonplace in the industry.”
In December 2018, The Guardian reported that Facebook had granted Netflix and Spotify access to users’ private messages, even allowing them to delete them.
What The Report Uncovered
The report uncovered that Facebook had given several major companies exceptions to its privacy policies. And this is including Amazon, Microsoft, and Sony, allowing them to access user data through certain loopholes.
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