Hungary's consumer protection authority GVH fined Facebook Ireland EUR 3.6 million for infringing competition law when it advertised its services as being free of charge on its home page and Help Centre. While it was true that users did not have to pay for the concerned services, Facebook benefited economically from the users’ data and activities, with users in this way paying for the services provided by the undertaking, GVH said. This is the highest fine that the authority ever imposed in a consumer protection case.
The authority noted that similar fines were imposed on Facebook in the US and EU. Facebook amended its misleading statements in April after pressure from the European Commission and consumer protection authorities in the EU.
