Passport Biodata Shown in News Reporting
UPDATED JAN 15, 2026
Standard Case 2026-005-FB-MR
Today, January 15, 2026 the Oversight Board selected a case referred by Meta regarding an image posted on the Facebook page of a leading German news outlet that shows an individual’s torn Russian passport with the biographical data page clearly visible. The caption, in Russian, describes the individual as a dual German and Russian citizen convicted of treason in Russia. The caption adds that the person tried to set the passport alight and then tore it up and threw it on the ground. It also reports that the person said the following when they tore up the passport: “I am ashamed of Russia. I do not want to be a citizen of Russia, which tortures so many people.”
Upon initial review, Meta determined the content may violate our Privacy Violations policy, as laid out in Meta’s Community Standards, but decided that the newsworthiness allowance applies and left the content up.
Meta referred this case to the Board because we found it significant and difficult as it creates tension between our values of privacy and voice.
Meta generally prohibits content that identifies users’ personally identifiable information. However, we know that there is a compelling public interest in allowing people to protest, which raises important questions as to whether we should be more flexible in allowing individuals to share their own personally identifiable information, especially within the context of a protest.
We will implement the Board’s decision once it has finished deliberating, and we will update this post accordingly. Please see the Board’s website for the decision when they issue it.