Facebook faces a fine from a German privacy controller for failing to get the approval of the people whose contact details it stores. At issue are site's invite and address-book synchronization functions, during which it uploads and stores contact information from e-mail and mobile phone address books of its users.

The problem, as per the Hamburg Commissioner for Data Protection and Freedom of Information, is that a few of that private information narrates to public who are not Facebook users, and who have not agreed their permission for the site to store their private information, nor utilize it for marketing purposes.

When somebody generates a Facebook account, they are invited to upload their e-mail address books to the site so that it can send e-mail invitations to their contacts to unite Facebook, or recognize those of their contacts that are previously Facebook users to advise that they become Facebook friends.

If the Facebook user selects not to send an e-mail invitation to a contact who is not so far a Facebook user, that contact's e-mail address is stored anyhow, linked with that of the user who uploaded it. Facebook frequently invites users, during their account page, to "Add public you identify as friends."