Joerg Koch/AP
France's data privacy regulatory arm announced it's fining Facebook 150,000 euros for violating data privacy standards. The group says Facebook used consumers' data, without a legal basis, to help advertisers target ads, and employed an unfair and opaque tracking technique through a cookie called "datr." Belgium has announced similar conclusions.
Why it matters: Europe has much stricter data privacy policies than the U.S., which has inhibited data-driven U.S. tech companies like Facebook and Google in those markets. Facebook, in particular, has been affected because of cookies they use to collect users' data even when they aren't signed in. E.U. regulators argue Facebook isn't doing enough to inform people about data collection.
Still to come: France and Belgium are part of a group of countries currently reviewing data policy policies. Spain and Germany are still reviewing Facebook's policies.