Facebook Data-Sharing Fiasco Affects 87 Million Users

Social media giant Facebook Inc. believes the personal data of up to 87 million users was unknowingly and inappropriately disclosed with British political consultancy Cambridge Analytica, which is more than the previous media estimate of 50 million.

Facebook Chief Technology Officer Mike Schroepfer stated that most of the users affected are in the US, while other reports said about 1.1 million of them are believed to be UK-based.

The data was used to create a software program capable of predicting and influencing voters. The 

Cupertino-based group found out that information had been collected by a third party in late 2015, but it was unable to notify users at the time.

Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said the company should have done more to examine and supervise third-party app developers, like the one that Cambridge Analytica hired in 2014.

Not a single employee had been fired over the issue, as Zuckerberg was not really planning to dismiss anyone else for the mistakes that they made.  

Zuckerberg added that Facebook was taking the necessary steps to oversee which information is accessible to third parties, and that it may take another two years to fix the problems.   

Shares of Facebook were up by 3.9 percent to $161.20 in after-hour trading. The company’s stock price has declined more than 16 percent since the Cambridge Analytica fiasco came out.

Australia’s Watchdog Starts Privacy Probe into Facebook

Following the news, the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) launched an investigation to prove whether Facebook violated its Privacy Act, after the social network group confirmed the information leak of more than 300,000 Australian users.

Acting Australian Information Commissioner Angelene Falk said all organizations covered by the 

Privacy Act have responsibilities on the personal data that they hold, which includes taking proper measures to ensure information security, as well as providing adequate notice when gathering and using user data.   

The 311,127 Australians, who the company believes had their private information inappropriately shared, add up to 0.4 percent of the users affected by the breach.  

Zuckerberg’s Leadership In Question

Chief executive Mark Zuckerberg took full responsibility for the data breach, but he stated that he was still the right person to lead the company.

As regards his role as head of Facebook, Zuckerberg said he was not aware of any talks concerning his position, although directors would have difficulty trying to drive out that since the Facebook co-founder is also the chairman of the company’s board.

Investor Scott Stringer said Zuckerberg cannot be fired by design, he can only step down, which Stringer believed he should do right away.

The slightest chance of his leadership being questioned is something a few people would have expected even a month ago, but due to the company’s recent issues, including improper data gathering as well as falsified news and propaganda, doubts over Zuckerberg’s ability to run Facebook started to surface.

Some have also believed that the company has grown beyond his control.

Zuckerberg is expected to testify on April 10 before the US Senate Judiciary and Commerce committees and on April 11 before the US House Energy and Commerce Committee regarding the company’s use and protection of user information.

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