EU rules Facebook cannot collect user data for targeted ads without consent

The European Court of Justice upheld a German order that Facebook stop harvesting users' data without permission.
The ruling undercuts Facebook's business model of selling targeted ads based on users' personal information.
The decision allows EU antitrust regulators to consider companies' compliance with privacy laws during competition investigations.
Facebook claimed it had a "legitimate interest" in processing users' data for personalized ads, but the court rejected that argument.
The ruling is expected to lead to stricter enforcement against Big Tech data collection and undermines tech companies' key legal justification for targeted advertising in Europe.