Austrian court closes jurisdiction hearing on Facebook suit
An Austrian court asked to hear a class-action suit brought against Facebook alleging invasion of privacy has closed further sessions to the public as it weighs whether it has jurisdiction in the case.
The Austria Press Agency says the court on Thursday ordered Facebook to give representatives of the plaintiffs translations of documents before the court within three weeks and for the plaintiffs' lawyers to respond within an additional three weeks.
The suit is being brought by Austrian law student Max Schrems and 25,000 Facebook users. They claim Facebook is illegally tracking their data, including through alleged involvement in the PRISM surveillance program of the U.S. National Security Agency.
The plaintiffs are each claiming 500 euros (about $540) in damages.
Facebook has said the suit is inadmissible under Austrian law.
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