Meta, Facebook Privacy Data Breach Dispute Mediation Proposal Acceptance Rejection

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] It has been confirmed that Meta, the operator of Facebook, did not accept the mediation proposal from the Personal Information Protection Commission (PIPC) to pay 300,000 KRW to each individual claimant in the collective dispute mediation related to allegations of providing member information to third parties.

According to the PIPC on the 25th, Meta sent an email on the same day stating that it would not accept the mediation proposal.

As the respondent, Meta's refusal to accept the mediation proposal resulted in the procedural failure of the mediation. It is reported that except for one individual claimant who applied separately, all other claimants accepted the mediation proposal.

Facebook was accused of violating personal information protection laws by providing personal information of its users' 'Facebook friends' to third parties without consent, and claimants demanded compensation payments, details of the types of personal information provided, and information about the third parties who received the personal information from Facebook.

The PIPC reported that such violations continued for about six years from May 2012 to June 2018, and that personal information of at least 3.3 million out of 18 million domestic Facebook users was provided. Last November, the PIPC imposed a record-high fine of 6.7 billion KRW on Facebook.

Subsequently, the Personal Information Dispute Mediation Committee under the PIPC held a plenary meeting on the 29th of last month to review the collective dispute mediation proposal against Meta and presented a mediation proposal. It included paying 300,000 KRW in damages to 181 claimants and allowing the claimants to view the identities of the third parties who received their personal information as well as the types and details of the provided personal information.

If all parties accept the mediation proposal, the mediation is established and has the same effect as a final judgment under the Civil Procedure Act. However, if either party does not accept the proposal, the mediation is terminated as 'mediation failure.' In this case, the claimants are left with litigation as the only means to seek compensation.