Facebook can go back to tracking Belgians who aren't logged in or don't have an account. <http://arstechnica.co.uk/tech-policy/2016/06/facebook-wins-privacy-case-agai...> In a somewhat unexpected twist, Facebook has won a legal battle against Belgium's data protection authority, which had sought to prevent Facebook from tracking non-Facebook (or not-logged-into-Facebook) users, both on the Facebook website itself but also via the company's Like and Share buttons that can be found in even the darkest depths of the known universe. The Brussels appeals court dismissed the case on Wednesday, saying that the Belgian CPP (Commission for the Protection of Privacy) had no jurisdiction over Facebook, which has its European headquarters in Dublin, Ireland. "We are pleased with the court's decision and look forward to bringing all our services back online for people in Belgium," a Facebook spokesperson said. "Today's decision simply and purely means that the Belgian citizen cannot obtain the protection of his private life through the courts and tribunals when it concerns foreign actors," the CPP said in a statement. The CPP also said that it may launch an appeal to the Belgian Court of Cassation—the court of last resort—which in the past had overruled cases that involved foreign company jurisdiction. Back in November 2015, a lower court ruled in favour of the CPP and ordered Facebook to quit tracking people who don't have a Facebook account or who aren't currently logged into the service. If Facebook didn't comply, it faced fines of up to €250,000 per day. Suffice it to say, the company complied: in December, Facebook said that it had stopped tracking Belgian visitors who were not logged in. Further Reading Facebook must stop tracking Belgian users within 48 hours, or be fined €250K per day More privacy woes for the company in the wake of Safe Harbour being struck down. Today's ruling is certainly a win for Facebook, but it's not the end of the story. The initial Belgian court ruling was based on EU privacy law, and so it's safe to assume that other national regulators will bring cases against Facebook in due course. Two likely candidates for following Belgian's example are the Netherlands and Germany, both of whose data protection authorities have been part of a European task force investigating possible violations of EU law by Facebook.