Meta challenges €91m Data Protection Commission fine

Facebook and Instagram owner wants the High Court to overturn the 'wholly disproportionate' fine imposed for improperly storing user passwords.

Meta, which operates Facebook and Instagram, claims Ireland's Data Protection Commission failed to consider whether the fines were 'effective, proportionate and dissuasive', as required by the GDPR. File picture: Brian Lawless/PA

Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta wants the High Court to overturn a “wholly disproportionate” €91m penalty imposed on it by Ireland’s data protection regulator for improperly storing user passwords.

The fines, which were imposed last September under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), relate to a 2019 incident where it was discovered the company had stored some user passwords in plaintext, which is an easily readable format, instead of applying encryption.