Facebook Privacy Scandal: Facebook Security | Facebook Security Check

Facebook Privacy Scandal – You’re probably wondering what kind of scandal could the social media giant facebook be involved in right? Well, it may interest you to know that a decade of apparent indifference for data privacy at Facebook has culminated in revelations that organizations harvested user data for targeted advertising, particularly political advertising, to apparent success.

Facebook Privacy Scandal

While the most well-known offender is Cambridge Analytical the political consulting and strategic communication firm behind the pro-Brexit Leave EU campaign. As well as Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign other companies have likely used similar tactics to collect personal data of Facebook users.

Facebook Privacy Scandal

The Facebook data privacy scandal centers around the collection of personally identifiable information of “up to 87 million people” by the political consulting and strategic communication firm Cambridge Analytical.

That company and others were able to gain access to personal data of Facebook users due to the confluence of a variety of factors, broadly including inadequate safeguards against companies engaging in data harvesting, little to no oversight of developers by Facebook, developer abuse of the Facebook API, and users agreeing to overly broad terms and conditions.

What Has Facebook Done Wrong

A lot of Facebook users might be wondering what the wrong Facebook has done. The Criticism of Facebook has led to international media coverage and significant reporting of its legal troubles. And the outsize influence it has on the lives and health of its users and employees. As well as its influence on the way media, specifically, the news is reported and distributed.

Notable issues include Internet privacy, such as the use of a widespread “like” button on third-party websites tracking users, possible indefinite records of user information,  automatic facial recognition software, and its role in the workplace, including employer-employee account disclosure.

What Is the Problem with Facebook Privacy?

Those privacy issues are now front and center. Facebook’s loose handling of how its data was acquired by app developers has plunged the company into the biggest crisis of its 14-year existence.

The revelation that a data Analytics Company used by Donald Trump’s presidential campaign was able to surreptitiously collect data on 50 million people through a seemingly innocuous quiz app has forced CEO Mark Zuckerberg to issue a public apology and promise changes.

Taking a step back to look at Facebook’s pattern of privacy issues provides an important perspective on just how many times the company has faced serious criticism. What follows is a rundown of the biggest privacy issues Facebook has faced to date:

Facebook Response

Regulators said Facebook falsely claimed that third-party apps were able to access only the data they needed to operate. In fact, the apps could access nearly all of a user’s personal data. Facebook users that never authenticated a third-party app could even have private posts collected if their friends used apps.

Facebook was also charged with sharing user information with advertisers, despite a promise they wouldn’t. “Facebook is obligated to keep the promises about privacy that it makes to its hundreds of millions of users,” Jon Leibowitz, then chairman of the FTC, said at the time.

“Facebook’s innovation does not have to come at the expense of consumer privacy. The FTC action will ensure it will not.” You can get more details about the Facebook privacy scandal here.

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