Facebook users are suing Meta for iOS browser snooping

Social media giant Meta is facing two new class action lawsuits related to its iOS app in the US. Two users believe the company is illegally spying through the integrated browser and are seeking compensation. there could be more Result by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC), According to a report by Mashable,

Browser can track user behavior

The official iPhone applications for Instagram and Facebook have a so-called in-app browser. It is called as soon as you click on the link of the two social networks. Security researcher Felix Krauss found in August that Meta integrates a so-called Meta Pixel into every page accessed. This can potentially be recorded when an ad is clicked, a button or link is pressed, text is selected, a screenshot is taken or entries are made – potentially if you enter them. Includes password and credit card information. Meta defended itself against the allegations, saying it complies with Apple’s data protection requirements (App Tracking Transparency) and, according to its own statements, uses the Pixel only to track ad success.

Meta stressed that they developed their code “to support users’ decisions about app tracking transparency”. [ATT] According to Meta, the technology is intended to, among other things, “collect user data to be used for targeted advertising and measurement purposes”. Users can avoid potential browser snooping by simply clicking on the link manually in the standard iPhone browser. Switch to Safari, which is inconvenient and therefore rarely done.” The fact is that the iOS Instagram app executes JavaScript code on all external websites that are displayed within the Instagram app using an in-app webview. , hence Krause to Mac and I.

Two lawsuits in San Francisco

Both lawsuits in the United States was filed in San Francisco. They each come from users who have been backed by specialized law firms. Both require that they be given class action status; It is also possible that competent judges may combine the cases because they contain similar charges. Users said Facebook defied Apple’s privacy policy, introduced in 2021, and also violated federal and state law prohibiting unauthorized collection of personal information.

A spokesperson for Meta told Bloomberg that the lawsuits were baseless. They designed their in-app browser to “respect users’ privacy choices”. This also applies to use for advertisements. In fact, Meta suffers massively from Apple’s ATT. The group is said to make billions less in sales than it did before the introduction of data protection technology. However, Meta isn’t the only company that uses tricks with an in-app browser: According to Krauss, TikTok also tracks this way — and practically won’t let you switch to the snoop-free Safari browser. gives.

(BSc)