EU member states agree higher fines for firms for privacy violations

Stiffer penalties: Companies doing business in the EU, like Facebook and Google, could soon find themselves on the hook for higher fines if found guilty of breaching data protection rules.

BRUSSELS: Businesses operating in the European Union could be fined up to 4% of their annual global turnover for breaching data protection rules under a proposal agreed on Dec 2. 

The EU is negotiating a data protection law to replace a patchwork of national laws dating back to 1995, aiming to set clearer limits on how companies can use EU citizens' private data and beef up regulators' enforcement powers.