Microtargeting on Facebook: Complaint against six parties

The data protection organization Noyb recently filed a complaint against six German parties. They are said to have unlawfully placed personalized election advertising on Facebook using microtargeting during the 2021 federal election. The backgrounds.

The international data protection organization noyb recently filed a complaint against several German parties with the Berlin Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information. The accusation: the parties used microtargeting on Facebook during the 2021 federal election to locate potential voters and lure them with personalized campaign promises.

Microtargeting: Parties violate GDPR

Representatives of the CDU, SPD, Alliance 90/The Greens, the AfD and the Left Party are affected. Noyb also lists the Ecological Democratic Party (ÖDP).

However, according to the European General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), political opinions are particularly protected. This means that the actions of the parties are illegal and harbor considerable dangers for democracy. The privacy of voters is also at risk.

GDPR protects political attitudes of individuals particularly strictly

According to Noyb, the fact that Facebook users are specifically addressed with political advertising is not prohibited per se. However, the social media service evaluates political views in the background. This means that both the platform and the parties involved are against Article 9 of the GDPR violated

“The GDPR protects data on people’s political views particularly strictly,” says Felix Mikolasch, data protection lawyer at Noyb. He added: “Such data is not only extremely sensitive, but also allows large-scale manipulation of voters”.

Microtargeting: A threat to democracy

According to Noyb, one of the greatest dangers of political microtargeting is that the opinion-forming of voters can be influenced. Political parties can make countless secret promises to specific groups that are completely imperceptible to everyone else.

Very different expectations could arise that politics could never meet. The result is a polarization of society. Individual parties could create advantages in the election campaign by making contradictory promises.

After the complaint: what’s next?

In the letter of complaint to the Berlin Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information, Noyb calls for a comprehensive investigation of the facts. The authority should determine that the relevant parties have violated the GDPR.

In addition, political actors should be obliged not to process the data that has already been collected. In addition, the data protection organization demands that a fine be imposed on the respondents.

Like research of ZDF Magazine Royal had shown in the past, all parties represented in the Bundestag used political microtargeting on Facebook in the 2021 federal election. This is made possible because the social media platform records almost all of its users’ online activities and sells the relevant information to advertisers.

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