Social media giant Facebook is being taken to Federal Court over alleged privacy breaches relating to the Cambridge Analytica scandal.

Key points: The information commissioner alleges Facebook committed "serious and/or repeated interferences" with privacy

The information commissioner alleges Facebook committed "serious and/or repeated interferences" with privacy The allegations relate to an app that shared data with notorious data analysis firm Cambridge Analytica

The allegations relate to an app that shared data with notorious data analysis firm Cambridge Analytica Facebook has already been fined in the UK, among other countries, over the data misuse scandal

The charges concern the personality quiz application This is Your Digital Life, which shared data with the now-notorious British data analysis firm.

In 2018, Cambridge Analytica made global headlines after its leaders claimed to use "psychological and political" information harvested on Facebook to target people with political advertising during the 2016 US presidential election.

The Australian Information Commissioner alleges Facebook disclosed the personal information of Australians unlawfully when it shared their data with the app in 2014 and 2015.

"We claim these actions left the personal data of around 311,127 Australian Facebook users exposed to be sold and used for purposes including political profiling, well outside users' expectations," Australian information commissioner Angelene Falk said in a statement.

The This is Your Digital Life app was able to collect not only the data of people who downloaded it, but also friends in their Facebook network.

Although around 53 Australians installed it, according to the Commissioner, the data of more than 300,000 Australians was also requested by the app. More than 86 million Facebook users were affected globally.

A Facebook spokesperson said the company "actively engaged" with the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) during its investigation.

"We've made major changes to our platforms, in consultation with international regulators, to restrict the information available to app developers, implement new governance protocols and build industry-leading controls to help people protect and manage their data," she said.

"We're unable to comment further as this is now before the Federal Court."

Facebook failed 'to take reasonable steps to protect personal information'

The Commissioner also alleges that Facebook breached privacy laws when it did not take reasonable steps to protect its users' personal information from unauthorised disclosure.

According to the OAIC's filing, the "opacity" of Facebook's privacy settings made it difficult for affected Australians to understand their data was shared with the app, and the site's design at the time left them "unable to exercise consent or control" over how their personal information was disclosed.

It also claims Facebook still has not provided the agency with "a precise record" of the personal information Facebook shared with the developers of the This is Your Digital Life app.

"All entities operating in Australia must be transparent and accountable in the way they handle personal information, in accordance with their obligations under Australian privacy law," Commissioner Falk said.

"Facebook's default settings facilitated the disclosure of personal information, including sensitive information, at the expense of privacy."

Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg was grilled multiple times by US politicians following the Cambridge Analytica revelations, and the company came under extensive scrutiny for its privacy practices.

In 2018, Facebook was fined 500,000 pounds ($998,000) by the UK's data protection watchdog over the Cambridge Analytica data misuse scandal.

It also paid $US5 billion ($7.64 billion) in the US over allegations it "deceived" users about their ability to control personal information, following an investigation by the Federal Trade Commission.

According to the OAIC, the Federal Court can impose a fine of up to $1,700,000 for each serious and repeated interference with privacy.

The OAIC announced it was investigating Facebook over the scandal in April 2018.