H&R Block, others shared ‘extraordinarily sensitive’ customer data with Meta, lawmakers say

Meta used data shared by H&R Block, TaxAct and TaxSlayer to create ads targeted to its users and to train Meta’s algorithms, according to a report from congressional Democrats. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Three large tax preparation firms sent “extraordinarily sensitive” information on tens of millions of taxpayers to Facebook parent company Meta over the course of at least two years, a group of congressional Democrats reported on Wednesday.

They say some of that data was then used by Meta to create targeted advertising to its own users, other companies, and to train Meta’s algorithms.