Global Facebook users will not get stronger privacy protections available to EU users, according to Reuters. CEO Mark Zuckerberg has told the news agency that Facebook would like to make the privacy protections put in place by the European General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR, law in spirit but would make exceptions. Zuckerberg has declined to explain those exceptions although the bottom line is, globally -- including in markets like India -- Facebook would be bringing some but not all of the European privacy guarantees set to take effect on May 25.

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Update: Mark Zuckerberg has said that the Reuters report misquoted him and that the same privacy protections that are going to be available to FB users in EU after GDPR comes into effect, will also be rolled out to users across the world. In other words this means the Indian Facebook users will get the same privacy protection that users in the EU will get.

"Overall I think regulations like this are very positive" Zuckerberg said on a conference call with journalists on Wednesday night. "We intend to make all the same controls available everywhere, not just in Europe."

Then he continued: "Is it going to be exactly the same format? Probably not. We'll need to figure out what makes sense in different markets with different laws in different places. But let me repeat this, we're going to make all the same controls and settings available everywhere, not just in Europe."

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"We're still nailing down details on this, but it should directionally be, in spirit, the whole thing," Zuckerberg said reiterating that many of the protections provided by the GDPR are already part Facebook's privacy settings, including the option to delete all user data. "The vast majority of what is required here are things that we've already had for years across the world for everyone." The European law, called the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), is being touted as the biggest overhaul of online privacy since internet came into existence, giving Europeans the right to know what data platforms like Facebook have stored on them and the right to have it deleted as and when they feel necessary. The likes of Facebook will have to be more specific in letting European users know how they plan to use their data, and also they will need to get explicit consent from users about the same. Failure to comply with the GDPR law will carry a maximum penalty of up to 4 per cent of their annual revenue. Globally, especially after the infamous Cambridge Analytica data scandal, there's been popular demand that Facebook put forth the same set of privacy standards across the board as it's going to be faced with and will have to oblige in the EU. In fact, the demand has been for all tech companies that deal with user data, to comply with the same standards. The likes of Apple are also on-board. But, for companies like Facebook, the new law could be a double edged sword. Because it wouldn't be able to use personal information as freely, it would invariably mean reduction in the value of ads. And that would mean sinking profits. For a company like Facebook, that relies on ad-based profits, the EU law would mean hampering business. And failure to comply would mean added expense through legal channels. Facebook has been in the eye of the storm over privacy concerns after an upstart voter-profiling company, called Cambridge Analytica, was allegedly found to have harvested more than 50 million user profiles on Facebook with the help of academic researcher Aleksandr Kogan. Without any consent from users. It was a data breach like no other. Cambridge Analytica has been suspended from Facebook, pending further information and Facebook is apparently working to better its security and privacy game by offering new set of tools that will supposedly make things easier for end-users and difficult for miscreants looking to exploit their data. That said Zuckerberg also said it's going to take years for it to mend the damages that ensued in the aftermath of the breach. Facebook still isn't calling it a breach though. Rather, a breach of trust, which is why it's working round the clock -- now -- to ensure such a thing doesn't happen again. It is looking to implement stricter privacy tool as well, but, clearly whatever it does in the rest of the world, wouldn't be as tight as what it's going to do for EU users because in the EU it's either the GDPR way or the highway.