Facebook wins appeal over tracking non-members in Belgium

Last year, a case brought forward by a Belgian privacy watchdog concluded that Facebook could no longer use cookies to track users who visited its pages without actually logging in, and as a result, Facebook barred unregistered users from accessing public pages entirely.

The Brussels appeals court dismissed the case on Wednesday, saying that the Belgian CPP (Commission for the Protection of Privacy) had no jurisdiction over Facebook, which has its European headquarters in Dublin, Ireland. The social network uses this tool to track the online browsing activity of both users and non-users, collecting information every time a person clicks on a Facebook “Like” button on another website.

“Today’s decision simply and purely means that the Belgian citizen can not obtain the protection of his private life through the courts and tribunals when it concerns foreign actors”, the CPP said in a statement.

Facebook appealed a 2015 ruling that ordered it to stop storing data from people who don’t have an account with the social network, or face a 250,000 euro ($277,800) daily fine.

It had been ruled that Facebook could not gather data about non-users in Belgium.; Facebook responded by blocking access to those without an account. The final appeal can remove the previous judgments but not deliver a new one.

In the meantime, the CPP can still take this case to the Belgian Court of Cassation, the highest Court in Belgium, for another chance to win jurisdiction over Facebook and try to protection Belgian citizens’ privacy from foreign companies’ privacy violations. Facebook felt that the ruling was unfair and appealed. It accused the company of trampling European Union privacy laws by tracking people who did not have a Facebook account without their consent.

In a statement, the regulator said the news from the court meant Belgians could not get the protection they need in their private lives through the courts if foreign companies were involved.

“We are pleased with the court’s decision and look forward to bringing all our services back online for people in Belgium”, a Facebook spokeswoman said.

The Belgian Privacy Commission first took Facebook to court a year ago, alleging that it was violating European Union privacy law by tracking the web activity of individuals who weren’t signed up to its platform without their approval.

In pre-market trading today, Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) shares were marginally down.