How Meta's handling of user data is changing in Europe The pressure and initiatives of the European Union are yielding many results.

In recent years, the European Commission has repeatedly fined Meta for violations related to the management of personal data and compliance with digital regulations. Just in the past year, the total amount of fines has exceeded one billion euros. Specifically, the fines concern Meta’s improper use of European users’ information, opaque advertising profiling practices, and unlawful data transfers to the United States. At the same time, the European Union has launched several investigations into Zuckerberg’s company for alleged violations of the Digital Services Act (DSA), the EU’s new legislation that imposes various obligations regarding online safety and content moderation, among other things. European authorities suspect that Meta is not doing enough to combat disinformation and violent content. These actions are part of a broader European effort to regulate major digital platforms and strengthen the continent’s digital sovereignty, aiming to balance technological innovation with the protection of European citizens’ rights.

In this context, it is not surprising that Meta recently announced its intention to stop – starting next October – the sale of political advertisements within the European Union. The decision comes in response to the introduction of the new European regulation on the transparency and targeting of political advertising, which will come fully into force that same month. According to Facebook’s founder, the obligations imposed by the regulation are too burdensome and difficult to comply with. The initiative’s goal is indeed ambitious: to combat political disinformation, increase transparency in online election campaigns, and prevent foreign interference in the democratic processes of EU states. This change could significantly impact the way parties, movements, and organizations use social media to promote their agendas and gain support. The regulation sets strict limitations on how political messages can be sponsored. It will still be possible to publish such content, but promoting it through paid advertisements will no longer be allowed.

Recently, Meta has asked Facebook and Instagram users to choose whether to continue using the respective platforms for free — accepting personalized ads — or to subscribe to a monthly plan to disable profiling-based advertising. Meta’s move is a response to the need to comply with two other major EU regulations: the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which — in short — require greater transparency in the handling of personal data and introduce additional protections for digital service users. The paid option allows users to remain on Facebook and Instagram without seeing personalized ads, while still potentially encountering promotional content such as sponsored posts by companies or creators — though these will not be selected based on the user’s personal data.

Those who choose not to subscribe, on the other hand, authorize Meta to use data and information extracted — for example — from their online interactions, among other things, to deliver tailor-made advertising content. Through mobile apps, the subscription costs €7.99 per month for the first account and €5 for each additional profile, while the web version is slightly cheaper. However, Meta has mentioned the possibility of lowering the initially announced prices in an attempt to respond to comments from EU authorities, who are assessing the compatibility of the “pay or consent” model with current European laws. This mechanism is currently under review by specialized bodies within the European Union to verify potential violations. Users’ choices can be changed at any time via the account management center on each platform.