This week, Irish data privacy regulators shared an updated draft order with other EU officials that could stop Facebook and Instagram from transferring all user data between the U.S. and Europe. This potentially game-changing decision comes after years of legal battles between the social media giant and European privacy advocates who believe the company has overreached and collected too much user info.

For its part, Facebook parent company Meta has warned that if such a decision is reached it will be forced to shut down Facebook and Instagram in Europe. However, following this news, the company tried to strike a more optimistic tone, hinting that an agreement is on the way.

“This draft decision, which is subject to review by European Data Protection Authorities, relates to a conflict of EU and U.S. law which is in the process of being resolved,” a Meta spokesperson said. “We welcome the EU-U.S. agreement for a new legal framework that will allow the continued transfer of data across borders, and we expect this framework will allow us to keep families, communities and economies connected.”

Despite Meta’s assurances, these regulators seem serious about reining in the company’s fundamental ability to collect and transfer user data. And if that happens, Facebook as we know it will change forever.

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