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Italy fines Meta €805m over Facebook’s access to Android photo galleries
Italy’s data protection agency has fined Meta €805m ($887m) for accessing Italian Android users’ photos and videos through Facebook’s gallery suggestions feature without specific consent or adequate information. Meta disputes the decision and says it will appeal; the case could require clearer consent for features that use personal data.
The feature, available since 2023, suggests images from a phone gallery as possible posts. The regulator said a single, generic authorisation did not make clear that users were also agreeing to gallery access, and ordered Meta to seek separate consent and explain how to disable the feature. About 20 million Android users in Italy were affected; the authority cited the scale and duration of the issue and Meta’s lack of cooperation when setting the fine, which is about 0.4% of its 2025 annual turnover.
In short
- Italy fined Meta €805m over Facebook’s access to users’ galleries.
- About 20 million Android users were affected.
- Meta plans to appeal and disputes the penalty.
Steelman: both sides, in good faith
The strongest fair case each way — we don't pick a winner.
The case for
The regulator can argue that people should understand and expressly agree when an app accesses personal photos and videos, which are highly private and may include other people. A separate, clear choice and simple instructions to disable the feature would make consent meaningful, while a substantial fine may be justified by the number of users and how long the practice continued.
The case against
Meta can argue that the feature was designed to suggest content users might choose to post, and that the authorisation and controls provided should be assessed in the context of how the feature worked. It may also contend that the regulator’s interpretation of consent or its calculation of the fine was mistaken; an appeal would test those points and whether the penalty was proportionate.
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Originally published by The Guardian as “Italy fines Meta $887m for accessing Android users’ photos and videos”.