The European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled on July 29, 2019, that companies that embed the Facebook "like" button on their websites, allowing their users personal data to be transferred to the North American social network, could be held liable for data collection. The ruling came in a lawsuit filed by a German consumer agency against online fashion retailer Fashion ID for breach of personal data protection by using the button on its website.
In this way, the operator of a website that has a plugin like the aforementioned “like” button could be considered a controller, in conjunction with Facebook, regarding the collection and transmission of personal data from its website visitors. However, the company will not be responsible for how Facebook will subsequently process the data, and its liability is limited to the collection and transmission of personal data, which is effectively determined by the company.