Meta Platforms, Inc. has agreed to stump up a record $50 million for Facebook users in Australia who were impacted by the Cambridge Analytica scandal as part of an enforceable undertaking to settle civil action brought by the Australian Information Commissioner.
The payment agreed to by Meta is the largest ever to address concerns about the privacy of individuals in Australia and the largest settlement paid by Meta outside of the US to settle the Cambridge Analytica incident.
The landmark settlement follows civil action brought by the Commissioner after an investigation by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) into data misuse by Facebook.
The Commissioner alleged that the personal information of some Australian Facebook users was disclosed to the "This is Your Digital Life" app in breach of the Privacy Act 1988.
The information is alleged to have faced the risk of disclosure to Cambridge Analytica and other third parties, and risked being used for political profiling purposes.
The $50 million payment agreed to by Meta will be available to Australians who were Facebook users between 2 November 2013 and 17 December 2015 and who either installed the This is Your Digital Life app or were Facebook friends with someone who installed the app.
The Australian Information Commissioner first launched civil proceedings against Meta in March 2020, leading to a court mediation process that has been under way since February this year.
“Today’s settlement represents the largest ever payment dedicated to addressing concerns about the privacy of individuals in Australia,” says Australian Information Commissioner Elizabeth Tydd.
“It represents a substantive resolution of privacy concerns raised by the Cambridge Analytica matter, gives potentially affected Australians an opportunity to seek redress through Meta’s payment program, and brings to an end a lengthy court process.”
As part of the resolution, the Commissioner has withdrawn the civil penalty proceedings against Meta in the Federal Court.
Meta, which had previously argued that the private messages, photos, email addresses and content of Facebook posts was not “sensitive information”, provided a brief statement following the settlement announced today.
“We settled as it is in the best interest of our community and shareholders that we close this chapter on allegations that relate to past practices no longer relevant to how Meta’s products or systems work today," says a Meta spokesperson.
"We look forward to continuing to build services Australians love and trust with privacy at the forefront.”
Under the enforceable undertaking, Meta will set up a payment scheme to be run by an independent third-party administrator who will be announced by the Facebook owner early next year.
The payment scheme will be structured into two tiers, with the first allowing individuals to apply for a base payment if they believe they experienced generalised concern or embarrassment because of the matter.
The second tier will provide for specific payment, likely to be higher than the base payment, to those who can demonstrate they have suffered loss or damage.
The Commissioner says the payments administrator will also establish “a timely internal review avenue for individuals in relation to the payment scheme”.
The OAIC says applications for the payment program are expected to be opened in the second quarter of 2025.
“The payment scheme is a significant amount that demonstrates that all entities operating in Australia must be transparent and accountable in the way they handle personal information, in accordance with their obligations under Australian privacy law, and give users reasonable choice and control about how their personal information is used,” says Tydd.
“This also applies to global corporations that operate here. Australians need assurance that whenever they provide their personal information to an organisation, they are protected by the Privacy Act wherever that information goes.”
Meta, which also contributed to the Commissioner’s legal costs, is required to make reasonable efforts to notify those individuals who are potentially impacted.
Any funds remaining after claims are paid to Facebook users will be paid into the Commonwealth’s Consolidated Revenue Fund.
“We remain committed to applying our powers under the Privacy Act to achieve proportionate outcomes to ensure that Australians’ privacy is protected, particularly with respect to technologies that have a high privacy impact,” says Privacy Commissioner Carly Kind.
“This groundbreaking outcome reflects the significant concerns of the Australian community.”
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