A recent class action lawsuit has accused Meta (Facebook’s parent company) of violating user privacy by granting Netflix access to Messenger message boxes. According to the allegations, Netflix was able to access Messenger users’ private messages to collect data for advertising purposes.
The lawsuit revealed that Meta had an agreement with Netflix, which allowed Netflix “programmatic access” to users’ private messages on Messenger. Netflix used this access to collect data to suggest content and track clicks, serving its advertising strategy.
Instead of protecting user privacy, Meta cooperated with Netflix to provide personal data for business purposes. The amount Netflix paid to Meta for this access was more than 100 million USD, which shows the seriousness of privacy violation.
Meta has denied the allegations, explaining that the access was only intended to allow users to share the content they are viewing with friends. However, this explanation is unlikely to convince public opinion. Meta’s selling of user data to third parties without explicit consent is a blatant violation of user privacy.
This incident once again highlights the need for stronger user privacy protections. Users should be informed about how their data is used and have control over the sharing of their data with third parties.
