Millions of German Facebook users could soon claim damages against Meta Platforms, Facebook's parent company. The Federation of German Consumer Organizations (vzbv) has announced a class action lawsuit related to a large-scale data theft in 2021. The aim is to secure potential claims of those affected before they expire.

In 2021, data of 533 million Facebook users from 106 countries were published online, including about six million people from Germany. The stolen information included, among other things, names, phone numbers, and email addresses. Meta has so far denied any blame and successfully dismissed numerous lawsuits. Nevertheless, lawsuits were filed worldwide, some of which have not yet been finally decided.

A judgment by the Federal Court of Justice (BGH) in mid-November facilitates the path to compensation. Accordingly, it is sufficient to be among those affected by the data leak to claim compensation. Proof of misuse or special impairments is not required. However, for the "mere loss of control" over personal data, only comparatively small amounts – around 100 euros – can be claimed. More serious consequences such as psychological stress could increase the amounts, however.

Affected parties may join the vzbv's model declaratory action from 2024. Registration in the claims register will be opened by the Federal Office of Justice. Interested parties can already be informed via a vzbv news alert.

The Meta stock reacted pre-market with a slight minus of 0.22 percent and was last quoted at 622.41 US dollars.