The Norwegian Data Protection Authority decided today to impose a fine on the American tech giant Meta for targeted advertising that makes use of personal user data from the platforms Facebook and Instagram.

As of August 14, Meta is required to pay daily 1 million Norwegian kroner (88,500 euros), announced Datatilsynet.

According to Reuters, the Meta appealed to a Norwegian court against the decision. The company is seeking an interim injunction against the imposition of the fine, and its application will be heard on August 22.

The fine follows a three-month “temporary ban on behavioral marketing on Facebook and Instagram” decided by the Norwegian Authority on July 14, Tobias Youdin, head of Datatilsynet’s international division, told AFP.

“Meta’s behavioral advertising includes intrusive monitoring of its userswhich has negative consequences for their right to data protection and freedom of information,” he added, pointing out vulnerable groups of people online such as “young people, the elderly as well as people with cognitive impairments.”

Datatilsynet emphasized that Meta cannot collect user data in Norway, such as users’ physical locations, and use it to target ads to them, called behavioral advertising, a business model common to Big Tech.

“We are also concerned that sensitive personal data may be used for marketing purposes. We therefore found Meta’s practices to be in breach of data protection law,” Yudin continued.

Meta had until August 4th to demonstrate that it is implementing measures to comply with the law.

“The fine is imposed because Meta has not yet complied with our ban,” Tobias Yudin said.

The fine will be valid until November 3rd. Datatilsynet can make it permanent by referring its decision to the European Data Protection Board, which has the power to do so, if it agrees with the Norwegian Authority. Such a development may widen the scope of the decision to other European countries. Datatilsynet has not yet made this move.

Last week, Meta announced that it would seek the consent of its users in the European Union before approving the sharing of their data for the purpose of targeted advertising on its social media.

Europe represents an important market for Meta. At the end of 2022, Facebook had about 300 million active daily users in Europe, out of a total of 2 billion worldwide, with Europeans making up about 1/5 of Meta’s advertising revenue.