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Amazon Sues Perplexity Over AI Shopping Agent That Secretly Accessed Customer Accounts

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Amazon has filed a lawsuit against Perplexity AI, accusing the fast-growing startup of illegally accessing Amazon customer accounts through its automated “agentic” shopping feature. The complaint, filed Tuesday in a U.S. District Court in California, claims Perplexity’s Comet browser and AI agent disguised automated activity as human browsing to place orders on behalf of users.

The dispute marks a major flashpoint in the debate over regulating AI “agents” — autonomous digital assistants that can navigate websites, make purchases, and perform other online tasks on users’ behalf. Amazon said Perplexity’s technology posed security risks and had repeatedly ignored requests to stop unauthorized activity on its platform.

“Perplexity’s misconduct must end,” Amazon said in its filing, adding that the startup’s software “purposely disguised its automated activity” and that its actions were “no less unlawful” than a physical break-in.

Perplexity, whose AI tools have surged in popularity amid the rise of conversational assistants, previously dismissed Amazon’s complaints, calling them an attempt to stifle innovation and protect its ad-driven business model. “Bullying is when large corporations use legal threats to block innovation,” the startup said in an earlier blog post.

Amazon argued that Perplexity’s AI agent interfered with its ability to deliver a personalized shopping experience, undermining systems built over decades. The company added that third-party apps making purchases for users must act transparently and respect site policies.

Perplexity said its Comet AI assistant allows users to shop and compare products autonomously, while keeping login credentials stored locally, not on company servers. It argued that consumers have the right to choose their own AI shopping tools — a stance that could shape future legal battles over the limits of AI automation in e-commerce.

Dutch Court Orders Meta to Simplify Facebook and Instagram Timelines

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A Dutch court has ordered Meta Platforms to change how it presents Facebook and Instagram timelines, ruling that users must be given a simple and direct way to opt out of personalized content based on profiling.

The decision, issued on Thursday, found that elements of Meta’s current design violate the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA), a sweeping law intended to curb manipulative digital practices and increase user control over online platforms.

Under the ruling, Meta has two weeks to implement the changes in the Netherlands. Users must be able to select a chronological timeline or another non-profiled feed, and — critically — that choice must remain active instead of resetting when users close the app or browser.

The court said Meta’s practice of automatically reverting users to the algorithmic “recommended content” feed amounted to a “dark pattern”, a manipulative design that limits free choice and infringes on the right to freedom of information.

“People in the Netherlands are not sufficiently able to make free and autonomous choices about the use of profiled recommendation systems,” the court said.

The timing of the ruling was also significant: the court noted that these design practices could influence public opinion ahead of the Dutch general election on October 29, emphasizing the importance of media neutrality and user autonomy.

META TO APPEAL

Meta said it would appeal the decision, insisting it had already made substantial adjustments to comply with the DSA and had notified Dutch users about how to view non-personalized feeds.

“We introduced substantial changes to our systems to meet our regulatory obligations under the DSA,” a Meta spokesperson said. “Proceedings like this threaten the digital single market and the harmonized regulatory regime that should underpin it.”

Meta also argued that such rulings should be handled at the EU level rather than by individual member states, warning that fragmented national court decisions could undermine the DSA’s unified enforcement goals.

DIGITAL RIGHTS GROUP CELEBRATES

The Dutch digital rights organization Bits of Freedom, which filed the case, welcomed the court’s ruling.

“It is unacceptable that a few American tech billionaires can determine how we view the world,” said spokesperson Maartje Knaap, calling the decision a major victory for digital freedom and user rights in Europe.

The ruling marks a new milestone in the EU’s effort to hold global tech firms accountable under the DSA — and could inspire similar challenges in other member states as regulators and courts push for greater transparency and user control in digital platforms.

EU Privacy Regulator Fines Meta 251 Million Euros for 2018 Data Breach

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Meta has been fined 251 million euros ($263.5 million) by the Data Protection Commission (DPC), the lead European Union data privacy regulator, for a 2018 security breach that exposed the personal data of 29 million users on Facebook.

Details of the Breach

The breach occurred after cyber attackers exploited a vulnerability in Facebook’s “View As” feature, which allowed users to see how their profile appeared to others. This vulnerability led to the exposure of sensitive personal data, including users’ full names, contact details, location, place of work, date of birth, religion, gender, and in some cases, children’s personal information.

According to Graham Doyle, Deputy Commissioner at the DPC, the breach posed a significant risk for the misuse of this data. Although the breach affected 29 million accounts globally, 3 million of those were in the EU and the European Economic Area (EEA).

Meta’s Response and Penalty

Meta addressed the issue shortly after the breach was discovered and took action to remedy the vulnerability. Despite this, the DPC imposed a fine under the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which has led to significant penalties for Meta in recent years. To date, Meta has been fined almost 3 billion euros for breaches under GDPR, including a record 1.2 billion euros fine in 2023 related to data privacy violations, which Meta is currently appealing.

Meta’s Appeal

Meta has announced its intention to appeal the fine and reiterated its commitment to protecting users’ privacy. A company spokesperson stated, “We took immediate action to fix the problem as soon as it was identified, and we proactively informed people impacted as well as the Irish Data Protection Commission.”

Broader Context

The DPC oversees the majority of large U.S. internet companies operating in the EU, as these firms have their European operations based in Ireland. This fine marks another chapter in the EU’s ongoing efforts to enforce data protection regulations under the GDPR, which was introduced in 2018 to strengthen privacy rights across the region.