HARRISBURG, Pa. — On Wednesday, the European Union hit the owner of Facebook and Instagram, Meta, with two fines for violating consumer privacy laws. The fines add up to $414 million.
Meta will face a Europe-wide ban from forcing users to agree to personalized ads, based on their online activity.
Scott Davis with the Cyber Security Association of Pennsylvania said the ruling targets Meta's main source of revenue.
“Facebook and Instagram, they’re part of this online suite of services, offered by Meta and others out there, that are free," said Scott Davis. "But by providing it free to a consumer, the consumer becomes the product.”
Davis added that it will take years to know the full repercussions of the EU's ruling against Meta. However, he said the ruling could force the company to reevaluate how it conducts business in the United States.
“If you take away the methodology that Meta generates revenue, then they have to look at a new way of generating revenue," said Davis.
Compared to the European Union, the United States does not have federal laws that protect online consumer data. Only five states, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Virginia, and Utah, have data privacy laws.
In Pennsylvania, numerous consumer privacy laws failed to pass last year. Davis hopes the ruling could trigger the Pa. Legislature to examine similar laws to protect online data of Pennsylvanians.
“It’s something that we have to do," said Davis. "Pennsylvania consumers are left out when you think of it because we don’t have those same types of protections.”
Meta has vowed to appeal the EU's ruling.