German Court: Facebook’s Real Name Policy is Illegal

The German court has ruled that Facebook’s real name policy is illegal and that users of the social network can register under pseudonyms in accordance with the privacy policy that has been in effect for ten years, reports The Verge.

The decision was made last month by the Berlin Regional Court, but was only published yesterday by the Association of German Consumer Organizations (VZBV), which filed the lawsuit against Facebook.

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– We strive to provide clear and simple guidelines and align Facebook’s services with the law, said a spokesperson for the social network, which will comply with the ruling but will also make changes to align with European privacy legislation coming into effect in June, according to Reuters.

According to VZBV, Facebook’s real name policy is a covert way of obtaining user consent for sharing their names, which are only part of the information for which they did not obtain their consent in a proper manner. The court clarified that Facebook did not give users a choice in other settings, such as sharing their location in chat. It also ruled against provisions that allow Facebook to use information such as profile pictures for commercial, sponsored, and similar content.

However, the German consumer association did not win on all counts of the lawsuit. Among other privacy issues for which VZBV plans to appeal is the complaint that the claim that Facebook’s services are free is misleading because users pay for them with their data.

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Since the ruling came from a regional court and both parties intend to appeal, it is unlikely that these rulings will be final. Nevertheless, the ruling is good news for users as the efforts of consumer associations successfully exert pressure against the policy of generous data sharing that benefits the company more than the users of the service.

Facebook has been facing privacy law issues in the EU for several years, as it is much stricter compared to that enforced in the US. Although the company can adjust some privacy rules at the state level, the fight of Europeans for consumer rights could ultimately strengthen privacy rights globally.