EU Court Orders Damages for GDPR Breach in Landmark Ruling

The EU General Court has for the first time ruled that the European Commission must pay damages for breaching its data protection regulations. A German citizen received 400 euros after his data was improperly transferred to the US via a Facebook login, violating GDPR rules.

In a landmark decision, the EU General Court has ruled that the European Commission must compensate a German citizen for failing to adhere to its stringent data protection regulations.

The court found that the Commission improperly transferred the citizen's personal data to the United States without adequate safeguards, resulting in a 400-euro fine against the body. The individual had registered for a conference using the 'Sign in with Facebook' option on the EU's login page, which inadvertently sent his IP address to Meta Platforms, violating EU data protection laws.

A spokesperson for the Commission acknowledged the court's ruling, stating that the body would undertake a detailed review of the judgment and its potential implications. Renowned as one of the strictest data privacy regulations worldwide, the GDPR has led to substantial fines for major corporations, including Klarna, Meta, and LinkedIn, for compliance failures.

(With inputs from agencies.)