Ireland, Facebook's European headquarters, has imposed a € 225 million fine on WhatsApp for violating EU data privacy laws. The result of an investigation launched in December 2018, the sanction initially decided by Ireland was revised upwards at the request of the European regulatory bodies. The Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) is largely responsible for overseeing adherence to the EU's Charter of Data Rights GDPR. The messaging app would not have "fulfilled its obligations of transparency" regarding the communication to users on the use of data.
"We disagree with today's decision on transparency that we provided to people in 2018 and the penalties are completely disproportionate. We will appeal against this decision": is the comment on the fine imposed by Ireland by a spokesperson for WhatsApp, who stresses how the platform "is committed to providing a secure and private service. We have worked to ensure that the information provided is transparent and complete and will continue to do so."