EU court adviser rejects Meta Platforms challenge over Facebook data

The latest update reveals that a European Union court adviser rejects Meta's fight against EU antitrust demands for Facebook data.

An adviser to Europe's top court on Thursday, February 26, 2026, backed Meta Platforms' fight against EU antitrust regulators over what the U.S. tech giant said were excessive requests for information from the latter during two investigations into the company.

The announcement came right after Meta had taken its case to the Luxembourg-based Court of Justice of the European Union, questioning EU demands related to its Facebook social network and online classified ads.

"In his opinion, Advocate General Athanasios Rantos proposes that the Court of Justice dismiss both appeals and uphold the judgments of the General Court," the court said in a statement, adding that Rantos said in his non-binding opinion that the General Court "did not err in law in assessing the necessity of the information requested or in examining the safeguards for its provision."

Judges, who usually follow the majority of such recommendations, will rule in the coming months.

Here's why the adviser rejected Meta’s argument:

Broad investigative powers:

The adviser said EU competition authorities have wide powers to request data when probing potential anti-competitive conduct. Such requests are lawful if they are relevant to the investigation.

Data protection does not block competition probes:

Meta argued that handing over large volumes of user data could conflict with EU privacy rules. 

The adviser found that competition law investigations can require access to data—provided regulators respect proportionality and safeguards under data protection law.

Proportionality test met:

The opinion indicated the data request was not excessive and was connected to the scope of the antitrust investigation.

Safeguards in place:

EU authorities are expected to handle sensitive data under strict confidentiality and privacy rules, reducing the risk of misuse.