Facebook's US data transfer case goes to the highest European court

LONDON – A long-running legal battle by an Austrian privacy activist against Facebook for data transfers to the US was brought to the highest court in the European Union on Tuesday.

The European Court of Justice was hearing arguments as to whether Dublin's Facebook affiliate could legally transfer users' personal data to the US parent company.

A decision, expected by the end of the year, could have far-reaching consequences for social media companies and the thousands of EU companies that send customer data to places such as the United States.

Privacy Officer Max Schrems opened the case in 2013 after former NSA contractor Edward Snowden revealed the extent of electronic surveillance by US security agencies. in particular, the fact that Facebook had given these agencies access to Europeans' personal data.

Schrems, worried that his personal information is in danger, had disputed data transfers through courts in Ireland, the headquarters of the European company Facebook.

The Irish Data Commissioner has made a preliminary ruling that transfers could be illegal, as the "standard contractual terms" governing data transfers do not adequately protect the confidentiality of consumer data. The clauses are data protection agreements approved by the EU Executive Board in which companies undertake to respect the block's strict privacy standards, including the protection of personal data. .

The Irish authorities finally asked the ECJ, which is based in Luxembourg and which is the highest court in the European Union, to pronounce on the conformity of these contractual clauses with the European rules.

Schrems has no problem with the agreements as such, but said the commissioner could, by law, take a more measured approach by stopping data transfers in individual cases, like that of Facebook.

Facebook said agreements are vital tools for businesses.

"Standard contractual clauses provide important safeguards to ensure that European data is protected when transferred abroad," said Jack Gilbert, deputy general counsel for the social network, in a statement. They "allow thousands of Europeans to do business around the world".

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