Facebook Slammed for Illegal Actions, Are Tumblr and Reddit Next?

Facebook has been taken to German courts a handful of times, and one of them has ruled that their ‘friend finder’ feature is illegal. Is Tumblr next?

German Court Calls Social Media Network ‘Intrusive’ and a ‘Nuisance’

The promotion for ‘friend finder’ was deemed intrusive, and Facebook was accused of not informing users about the feature well enough. The German court also upheld the claims made in 2014 and 2012 by two lower Berlin courts. This confirms that Facebook indeed violated German laws on data protection, and engaged in unfair trade practices by using deceptive marketing and advertising methods.

‘Friend finder’ allows Facebook access into user’s contact lists and sends them invitations to join the social media platform. These invitations, naturally, were seen as both intrusive and something of a nuisance. The German court agrees.

Social Media Network Found Guilty of Advertising Harassment

In 2010, Facebook was hit with a lawsuit from the Federation of German Consumer Organizations, which accused the social media platform of the very crime. The German court has found Facebook guilty of this crime, and also noted how Facebook does not inform users properly on the way their data is handled.

German Authorities Expect Similar Rulings if Tumblr or Reddit Ignore Privacy

The Federation of German Consumer Organizations has happily welcomed the verdict, saying that other platforms will face similar consequences if they ignore German privacy laws. Many firms use vague advertising or intrusive messages to attract new users, but they better think twice if they want to be big in the German market. If platforms like Tumblr and Reddit hope to make it, then they have to make sure never to make these mistakes.

Facebook has gotten into a lot of trouble in regards to privacy. Two years ago, company researchers were accused of toying with the emotions of as much as 700,000 users as an experiment. Last year, Facebook was accused of purposefully bugging their Android app to test how many users would try to get back into the platform. This was happening in Australia, Latin America and the European and Asian regions. The experiment is measly in accordance of the National Security Agency’s PRISM surveillance program, which allows companies to access user data and hand it to third parties for research and development.