German regulator orders Facebook to allow pseudonyms

Pseudonyms allowed: Facebook cannot arbitrarily decide to remove users' aliases and use their real names against their wishes, ruled a German court. Photo: Reuters

BRUSSELS: Facebook may not prevent its users from using fake names, a German privacy watchdog said, in the latest privacy setback for the US company in Europe. 

The Hamburg data protection authority, which is responsible for policing Facebook in Germany, said the social network firm could not unilaterally change users' chosen usernames to their real names, nor could it ask them for official ID.