Facebook Instagram Meta Shutdown!! What’s The News?
Meta has planned to shut down Facebook and Instagram in Europe if it cannot transfer, store and process EU data on the US servers. Despite social media giant making 6.8 billion dollars a year on the continent as advertising revenue, what’s the urgency to take off Meta? Get to know everything about this hyped Facebook Instagram Meta Shutdown?
After breaking it, the social media company warned that it could walk away from the European Union’s continent, which does not include Britain. The European Union has laws protecting the fundamental rights of their citizens, privacy. The US, on the other hand, with laws in place such as FISA, guarantees that there must be surveillance. So, we have a little bit of disconnect in how the governments either protect or do not protect their citizen’s data.
Is this why Meta plans to remove Facebook and Instagram from Europe? Many more connecting dots throw light on Meta’s big step. What is it exactly? Let’s find out in the post below.
Could Facebook And Instagram Be Removed From Europe?
As Meta says, in 2020, the European Union privacy regulator sent the company a preliminary notice to stop transferring data concerning the company’s EU customers to the US. The decision was based on growing concerns from EU officials regarding possible surveillance practices being conducted by US Government authorities.
In this case, the exact nature of the danger was not clarified. Still, the decision was made after the Trump Administration’s move to block several Chinese-owned applications from America, such as TikTok, because the apps could serve as a tool to supply China’s government CCP with information about US citizens.
The push did not succeed the US government, and TikTok and several other Chinese apps remain in operation within the US. However, the TikTok incident raised new concerns regarding the security of tracking foreign users through social media and the possible ways that regional organizations could use such information should they be to do so.
What’s The Reason Behind Facebook Instagram Meta Shutdown In Europe
There’s no reason to worry about this issue among the US and EU countries due to their ties in many areas. Yet this is still a problem, and as Meta states, the official ruling in this issue could be made in the coming months. It might, at a minimum, theoretical terms, force Meta to review how it stores users’ data.
It could also result in which could result in Facebook Instagram Meta shutdown in Europe.
It’s an enormous step, and it appears more like a form of rhetoric at the moment rather than something that Meta will take. However, in February of this year, Meta had to remove all Australian news media from its platforms due to an issue regarding revenue share, proving that it’s willing to take drastic steps in certain instances.
If it must, meta might still be able to agree on the transfer of user data and ensure that it continues to process EU user data in its data centers in the United States. The company could be ordered to keep the entire process in the region.
Take note that Meta has facilities for data storage in Ireland, Sweden, and Denmark and has recently made an application to establish another one in the Netherlands. It’s therefore not possible that Meta could meet similar requirements if it needed to. But it’s an enormous undertaking. It may also restrict the analysis of user data and analysis, especially when Meta is already facing less capacity in this area because of Apple’s iOS 14 update.
The second benefit that could be a potential benefit for EU nations could be related to tax obligations and the need to ensure that Meta contributes its fair share of taxes in every region. Suppose Meta has to be present in every country and have fully localized offices and data processing. In that case, this may limit its ability to focus on low-tax countries to establish regional bases.
This is a more extended bow and is not the primary purpose of this proposal. Still, the idea is that such regulations guarantee the sovereignty of data in every region and could be linked to other areas’ governance.
However, a complete EU closure that includes Facebook and Instagram is unlikely in the overall picture. Facebook-owned 427 million users within the EU and was the only place in Europe where it showed any increase (+4m of MAU) during the last quarter. That’s not even counting Instagram.
Will Meta Sacrifice Its Audience Base
The prediction is that they’ll have to go through all avenues before they can do that as a decision is that isn’t yet in place, so we’re not in the next step now?
Bonus Update: Meta has posted a blog post explaining that it does not intend to withdraw its apps out of Europe:
“We have no desire to withdraw from Europe; of course, we don’t. But the simple reality is that Meta, like many other businesses, organizations, and services, relies on data transfers between the EU and the US to operate our global services. We’re not alone. At least 70 other companies across a wide range of industries, including ten European businesses, have also raised the risks around data transfers in their earnings filings.“
Meta states that the public disclosure of this risk conforms with the legal obligations to communicate the significant risks to investors.
How To Disconnect Your Facebook Account From Instagram?
If your Instagram account is linked to your Facebook account, then reading this news, you must consider how to disconnect your Facebook account from Instagram? If Meta takes down Instagram and Facebook in European countries, don’t worry. Here are the tricks you can use to unlink your accounts and use them independently.
- Open your Instagram account.
- At the top right corner, you’ll find three dots. Click on it.
- Then spot the ‘setting’ gear in the given options and click on it.
- Go to the ‘account’ section after that. Click on ‘share top other apps.’
- Next, click on the ‘Facebook’ option. You’ll find two options displayed on the screen. One is ‘reset settings,’ and the other is’ account center.’
- Click on ‘Account center.’ This will open all the accounts linked to your Facebook account.
- Tap on ‘account and profiles.’
- If you want to remove your Instagram account from Facebook, you need to tap on the Instagram account profile.
- You’ll get an option saying ‘remove from account center.’ Click on it.
- This will unlink your Facebook account from Instagram.
5 Best Facebook And Instagram Alternatives
The best thing about social media sites is that you are not limited to a few options. You are made available with several social networking options, like Facebook and Instagram.
So, what if Meta removes these platforms from Europe? You can always g for better alternatives like these:
1. Diaspora
If you love using Facebook, then you’ll love Diaspora too. Diaspora is a Facebook alternative introduced in the year 2010. Since then, it has developed a good user base. Decentralization, privacy, and freedom are the three perspectives. Diaspora ensures the users with.
2. Vero
Are you tired of getting ads and spoilers on your Facebook page? It’s time to switch to a better ad-free network such as Vero. Vero was created in 2015 and has come a long since then. At present, it has a user base of 3 million. The best part is you get a free membership throughout life for using Vero.
3. Path
The Path is a social networking site created by a Facebook executive. So, you can enjoy Facebook-like features here in Path social media. Earlier started as a small group connectivity service and now extended to infinite connections, Path is one of the best alternatives to Facebook.
4. Ello
Now you don’t have to worry about data piracy, as Ello provides a secure place to play your bid. It’s an ad-free Facebook alternative that came into being in 2014. If you are an artist, you’ll like the platform even more, as it provides some of the best handy features.
5. NextDoor
If you use Facebook and Instagram to connect with local communities rather than large-scale communities, NextDoor is the best alternative. The app is not available in Canada, but European countries can enjoy it.
Wrapping Up:
Now that it’s clear that Facebook Instagram Meta Shutdown news is just hyped misguided information, it will be amazing to see what happens next. Will Meta think of making this big move?
Or will it stick to providing services to European countries to cover up its heavy stock loss after investment in Metaverse?
Stay tuned for more juicy updates!
