Meta Platforms Inc., formerly Facebook Inc. – CJEU Judgment (European Union, 2023)

CJEU Judgment
Court of Justice of the European Union7 July 2023European Union
final
ePrivacy
CJEU Judgment

The Court of Justice ruled that Meta cannot track users across websites without their consent. This decision is important because it reinforces the need for companies to get permission before using tracking technologies.

What happened

The Court held that Meta tracked users across third-party websites without obtaining valid consent.

Who was affected

Website visitors whose browsing activities were tracked by Meta's tools were affected.

What the authority found

The Court ruled that Meta lacked a valid legal basis for processing personal data, violating GDPR requirements for consent.

Why this matters

This ruling sets a strong precedent that companies must obtain consent for tracking users. Website operators should review their consent practices to comply with these standards.

GDPR Articles Cited

AI-verified

Art. 4(1) GDPR
Art. 4(2) GDPR
Art. 4(7) GDPR
Art. 5(1)(a) GDPR
Art. 5(1)(c) GDPR
Art. 5(2) GDPR
Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR
Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR
Art. 6(1)(c) GDPR
Art. 6(1)(d) GDPR
Art. 6(1)(e) GDPR
Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR
Art. 6(3) GDPR
Art. 7(1) GDPR
Art. 7(4) GDPR
Art. 9(1) GDPR
Art. 9(2)(a) GDPR
Art. 9(2)(e) GDPR
Art. 4(11) GDPR
Art. 4(23) GDPR
View original scraped data
Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR
Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR
Art. 4(11) GDPR
Art. 4(2) GDPR
Art. 4(7) GDPR
Art. 4(1) GDPR
Art. 4(23) GDPR
Art. 5(1)(a) GDPR
Art. 5(1)(c) GDPR
Art. 5(2) GDPR
Art. 6(1)(b) GDPR
Art. 6(1)(c) GDPR
Art. 6(1)(d) GDPR
Art. 6(1)(e) GDPR
Art. 6(3) GDPR
Art. 7(1) GDPR
Art. 7(4) GDPR
Art. 9(1) GDPR
Art. 9(2)(a) GDPR
Art. 9(2)(e) GDPR

Original data from scraper before AI verification against source document.

National Law Articles

AI-identified

§ 19(1) GWB
§ 32(1) GWB
§ 50f(1) GWB
§ 2 EU-Verbraucherschutzdurchführungsgesetz
Decision AuthorityCJEU
Reviewed AuthorityOLG Düsseldorf
Source verified 9 April 2026
national law identified
Full Legal Summary
Detailed

{{CJEUdecisionBOX | Case_Number_Name = C‑252/21 | Date_Decided = 2023-07-07 | ECLI = ECLI:EU:C:2023:537 | Reference_Body = OLG Düsseldorf | Reference_Case_Number_Name = Kart 2/19 | Initial_Contributor = at | Judgement_Link = https://curia.europa.eu/juris/document/document.jsf?pageIndex=0&doclang=EN&docid=275125 | Opinion_Link = https://curia.europa.eu/juris/document/document.jsf?pageIndex=0&doclang=EN&docid=265901 | Party_Name_1 = Meta Platforms Inc., formerly Facebook Inc. | Party_Link_1 = https://about.meta.com/ | Party_Name_2 = Meta Platforms Ireland Limited | Party_Link_2 = | GDPR_Article_1 = Article 6(1)(a) GDPR | GDPR_Article_2 = Article 6(1)(f) GDPR | GDPR_Article_Link_1 = Article 6 GDPR#1a | GDPR_Article_Link_2 = Article 6 GDPR#1f | EU_Law_Name_1 = Article 4(3) TFEU | EU_Law_Name_2 = Article 101 TFEU | EU_Law_Link_1 = https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/treaty/tfeu_2016/art_4/oj | EU_Law_Link_2 = https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/treaty/tfeu_2016/art_101/oj | National_Law_Name_1 = § 19(1) GWB (in EN) | National_Law_Name_2 = § 32(1) GWB (in EN) | National_Law_Link_1 = https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/englisch_gwb/englisch_gwb.html#p0062 | National_Law_Link_2 = https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/englisch_gwb/englisch_gwb.html#p0227 | Party_Name_3 = Facebook Deutschland GmbH | Party_Name_4 = Bundeskartellamt | Party_Name_5 = Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband e.V. | Party_Name_6 = | Party_Name_7 = | Party_Name_8 = | Party_Name_9 = | Party_Name_10 = | Party_Name_11 = | Party_Name_12 = | Party_Name_13 = | Party_Name_14 = | Party_Name_15 = | Party_Name_16 = | Party_Name_17 = | Party_Name_18 = | Party_Name_19 = | Party_Name_20 = | Party_Link_3 = | Party_Link_4 = https://www.bundeskartellamt.de | Party_Link_5 = https://www.vzbv.de/ | Party_Link_6 = | Party_Link_7 = | Party_Link_8 = | Party_Link_9 = | Party_Link_10 = | Party_Link_11 = | Party_Link_12 = | Party_Link_13 = | Party_Link_14 = | Party_Link_15 = | Party_Link_16 = | Party_Link_17 = | Part

Outcome

CJEU Judgment

A judgment by the Court of Justice of the European Union, typically on a preliminary reference from a national court.

Violations (1)

Third-Party Cookies Without Consent
critical

Third-party tracking cookies or scripts are loaded without obtaining prior user consent.

Art. 13, 14 GDPR

Related Cases (0)

No other cases found for Meta Platforms Inc., formerly Facebook Inc. in EU

This is the only recorded case for this entity in this jurisdiction.

Details

Judgment Date

7 July 2023

Authority

Court of Justice of the European Union

About this data

Data: GDPRhub (noyb.eu)
Licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
AI-verified and classified

Cite as: Cookie Fines. Meta Platforms Inc., formerly Facebook Inc. - European Union (2023). Retrieved from cookiefines.eu

Report Inaccuracy

Last updated: