"If You Don't Agree, You Can't Use Facebook or Instagram"... Why Is Personal Data Requested Only in Korea?

Excessive Personal Information Requests on Facebook and Instagram
Account Use Prohibited from August 9 if New Privacy Policy Not Agreed To

'Meta' sign displayed at the Facebook campus in Menlo Park, California, USA
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Nayeon] Meta, the operator of Facebook and Instagram, has sparked controversy by announcing the implementation of a new privacy policy next month. It has notified users that if they do not agree to the revised privacy policy, they will not be able to use their accounts starting August 9.

This has caused confusion among domestic users. The number of mandatory user information collection consent items is excessively high, and if users do not agree, their account usage is completely blocked.

According to the IT industry on the 24th, Meta is requiring users to agree to privacy-related provisions such as the provision of user information to third parties on Facebook or Instagram by August 8.

There are six mandatory consent items that Meta requires users to agree to by August 8.

These include the collection and use of personal information, provision of personal information, cross-border transfer of personal information, location information, updates to the privacy policy, and terms of use. Meta states that such personal information is necessary for providing 'personalized information' such as advertisements, content, and news through algorithms.

A Meta representative said, "The consent procedure is a means to meet Korea's privacy processing expectations," adding, "If consent is not obtained from users by the update application deadline according to these procedures, we have no choice but to suspend service usage."

He added, "Even if service usage is suspended, the (Facebook or Instagram) account does not disappear," and "Unless users separately request account deletion, they can still use the service with the existing account after going through the update consent procedure."

However, users are strongly opposing this. Since users cannot use Facebook or Instagram without consenting, Meta is effectively forcing them.

The People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy pointed out, "Meta claims that this revision is to better explain how Meta processes personal information to users, but since users' choices are very limited, it merely justifies excessive collection and processing of personal information."

They continued, "Korea's Personal Information Protection Act is based on the principle of collecting the minimum necessary information to achieve the purpose, distinguishes between essential and optional information for service provision, and prohibits refusal of service for not consenting to optional information," criticizing Meta's policy as "undermining the principle of minimum information collection."

Users' unfavorable reactions were also fueled by several personal information leakage incidents involving Meta domestically and internationally. Last year, a lawsuit for damages was filed regarding Facebook's unauthorized provision of personal information of about 3.3 million domestic members to external parties.

Some users respond that, unlike other platforms, Meta's process of seeking consent is somewhat 'conscientious.' In fact, it is not illegal for platform operators to provide member information to national investigative agencies based on court warrants or laws. Meta is reportedly bewildered that its proactive consent-seeking action has become a target of criticism.

However, a bigger issue is that Meta's demands are limited to Korea. Meta does not seek any consent from users in the United States or Europe.

The user notice only states, "Click (the link) if you want to know more about the processing policy." In India, users are asked for consent, but regardless of consent, they can use the service, which differs from the situation in Korea.

The government has also launched an investigation related to Meta. On the 22nd, the Personal Information Protection Commission stated, "We are focusing on reviewing whether the personal information collected by Meta users is absolutely necessary for service provision."

They added, "We take seriously any actions that cause inconvenience to citizens' lives, and if violations of the Personal Information Protection Act are confirmed as a result of the investigation, we will actively take measures to protect users' personal information."

Despite these controversies, Meta appears to maintain the policy. Meta stated, "This is to provide transparency in the privacy policy," and "Korean users are first required to give mandatory consent, but can later cancel it through the 'Settings' menu."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.