Italy has imposed a fine of 805 million euros on Meta, the company that owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, for accessing photographs and videos stored on Android devices without having previously obtained the consent of their owners or informed them of it. The penalty, announced this Saturday, 14 November, by the Italian data protection authority, represents a new setback for the US technology giant, which is again coming under the scrutiny of European regulators for its practices related to privacy and the processing of personal information.
As Reuters has reported, the investigation has determined that Meta could access users’ photo and video galleries through an integrated feature in the Facebook app, designed to suggest personal content that could then be shared on the social network. The Italian body considers that this mechanism allowed the company to access material stored on phones without providing sufficient information to those affected or obtaining their authorization. The fine amounts to about 887 million dollars and is equivalent to approximately 0.47% of the group’s worldwide revenues, according to calculations by the authority itself.
Meta will have 60 days to modify access to personal galleries
The ruling is not limited to imposing a financial penalty, but also requires Meta to deactivate by default the function that allows access to photographs and videos from Android devices. The company will have a period of 60 days to introduce the changes needed and must request consent separately before using this tool, so that the user can expressly decide whether to authorize or not access to their personal files.
The investigation began in 2025 and has focused on how this Facebook feature works and on the conditions under which Meta accessed the content on devices. One of the fundamental elements of the procedure has been the absence of informed consent, since the possibility of suggesting photographs for publication does not exempt the platform from complying with data protection obligations. The Italian authority has thus placed the focus on the need for users to know what information an app can consult and for what purpose it is used.