BRUSSELS (Sputnik) – The European Commission said Thursday it fined Facebook social media network 110 million euros ($122.5 million) for providing "misleading" information during the commission’s investigation of its acquisition of WhatsApp instant messaging application.
We need accurate #facts to do our job. @facebook now fined 110 mio € for giving wrong/misleading information when it took over WhatsApp.
— Margrethe Vestager (@vestager) 18 мая 2017 г.
"The European Commission has fined Facebook €110 million for providing incorrect or misleading information during the Commission's 2014 investigation under the EU Merger Regulation of Facebook's acquisition of WhatsApp," the commission said in a statement.
According to the statement, Facebook informed the Commission that when acquiring WhatsApp in 2014, it would be technically unable to connect the accounts of Facebook and WhatsApp users. In August 2016, however, the WhatsApp policy terms changed, making it possible to link its users' phone numbers with Facebook accounts.
#Mergers: @EU_Commission fines Facebook €110 million for providing misleading information about WhatsApp takeover https://t.co/zWRsc8X9yk
— Ricardo Cardoso (@RCardosoEU) 18 мая 2017 г.
"Today's decision sends a clear signal to companies that they must comply with all aspects of EU merger rules, including the obligation to provide correct information," EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said, as quoted in the statement.
The news come two days after the French National Commission on Information Technology and Freedoms (CNIL) fined Facebook 150,000 euros (over $165,600) for violating the data protection act. Meanwhile, on Friday a 3 million euro fine was imposed on WhatsApp by the Italian Competition Authority (ICA) for allegedly forcing its users to share their personal data with Facebook.
