A former Meta employee in London is under investigation by the Metropolitan Police for allegedly downloading approximately 30,000 private photos from Facebook users. The engineer, who reportedly created a program to bypass security protocols and access personal images, was arrested in November 2025 on suspicion of unauthorized computer access.
Meta confirmed the breach was detected over a year ago, leading to the employee's immediate termination and a referral to law enforcement. A company spokesperson stated, "We notified affected users and have since enhanced our security measures."
The Metropolitan Police's Cybercrime Unit is handling the case following a referral from the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation. The suspect, a man in his 30s, has been released on bail and is required to report back to authorities in May.
This incident adds to Meta's ongoing security challenges. In recent years, the company has faced significant fines from regulatory bodies:
In November 2022, Meta was fined €265 million (£228 million) by Ireland's Data Protection Commission after personal details of hundreds of millions of Facebook users were published online.
In September 2024, the company received another €91 million (£75 million) penalty for storing user passwords without encryption on internal systems.
Meta, which also owns Instagram and WhatsApp, continues to navigate legal battles regarding platform design. In March, a California jury found both Meta and Google liable for creating addictive social media features that harmed a young woman's mental health, resulting in a $6 million (£4.5 million) damages award. Both companies have stated they disagree with the verdict and plan to appeal.