Germany attacks the excesses of Facebook

The direction of Facebook marketing is probably not displeased with its results in Germany. According to a survey of specialized institute ComScore, that is the German Internet site that spend the most time (16.2% of the time spent on the Internet) to Google (12.3%) and far ahead of Microsoft ( 5%). However, the legal department of the company led by Mark Zuckerberg may not have the same view. On behalf of the infringement of individual liberties, supervisors multiply appeals against the social network.

The latest example: the ultimatum issued by Johannes Caspar, the official responsible for "data protection and freedom of information" for the Land of Hamburg but, on this issue, working for all of Germany. Mr. Caspar was given until November 7th to Facebook to get "in accordance with European and national law" on the face recognition. A picture can be exploited to the identity of a person so recognized be communicated to its "friends" without the explicit consent seemed illegal. But that is not there, "What for this feature, Facebook is developing a database to recognize the faces of millions of users is much more worrying."

With more than 75 billion photos stored, Facebook has so far identified, according to its own data, more than 450 million people. It is estimated that more than 1000 names are so identified every second. "The risks of such an accumulation of data is huge," explained Johannes Caspar in August. At first, he asked Facebook not to abandon this popular feature, but to erase the data. The refusal of the American company, whose European headquarters in Ireland, this officer is now considering a lawsuit.

"THE DUTY OF THE STATE"

Johannes Caspar is not the only German to be given a hard time on Facebook. In-state region of Schleswig-Holstein Thilo Weichert counterpart chose two other angles of attack. The first is sending data to the United States without the consent of the user, the second is the use of the key "I". Thilo Weichert is a repeat offender. Thanks to him - or her fault, it depends - Google has given to set up Google Street View in the state-region located in northern Germany. Denying that Facebook can know without the knowledge of the person that he consults a third party site itself registered on Facebook and features the famous button, even if that user is not itself registered on Facebook, Thilo Weichert announced it would impose a fine (up to 50 000 euros) to companies in the Schleswig-Holstein connected to Facebook via the "I". He even demanded that the state-region waives its own Facebook page.

Initiatives are not unanimously in Germany. Schleswig-Holstein has also not given up on his Facebook page, but clearly shows the following message: "The head of the Data Protection warns that Facebook violates German law on data protection." Ilse Aigner, Federal Minister responsible for Consumer Protection believes it, that each country-region can not have its own rules in this area. Internet users also complain of the "hard-line" by Thilo Weichert, even its "paternalistic". In a country marked by the Nazis but also by the Communist dictatorship, many are wary of a state that claims to protect citizens against themselves or decide for them what is good for them and what does not.

Facebook, Google and other Internet companies have pleaded their case Wednesday, November 2 in Berlin, during a first meeting at the Interior Ministry. Facebook estimates that comply with European law, would get by adopting a code of conduct. The interior minister, Hans-Peter Friedrich (CSU) should decide early 2012. But a few days ago, Peter Schaar who chairs the federal data protection (the German equivalent of the CNIL), was more assertive. He considers it the "duty of the State to be concerned about the fundamental right of citizens to determine for themselves the use of their personal data by companies."

To convince his countrymen of the merits of its position, Peter Schaar argument uses a typically German and rather unexpected in the mouth of an official, also environmental activist: thanks to the German law on data protection, more demanding than in many other countries, German companies are also in this area, ahead of their global competitors. In his view, data protection is a key to success in German exports in a world dominated by cyber crime. Faced with such an argument, Facebook has indeed the need to worry.