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UK, Australia Investigating Facebook Amid Cambridge Analytica Data Scandal (go.com)
Both the United Kingdom and Australia said Thursday that they have opened formal investigations into Facebook amid allegations that their citizens' data was improperly shared with Cambridge Analytica. ABC News reports: The Information Commissioner's Office in the U.K. is "looking at how data was collected from a third party app on Facebook and shared with Cambridge Analytica. We are also conducting a broader investigation into how social media platforms were used in political campaigning," according to Commissioner Elizabeth Denham. The office will investigate Facebook, along with 29 other organizations that have not been named.
Earlier Thursday, Australia said it had opened a formal investigation into the tech giant amid allegations that Australian users' data was improperly shared with Cambridge Analytica. "Today I have opened a formal investigation into Facebook, following confirmation from Facebook that the information of over 300,000 Australian users may have been acquired and used without authorization," Angelene Falk, Australia's acting information commissioner and acting privacy commissioner, said. According to Falk, Australia will work with international regulatory agencies to investigate whether Facebook violated the country's privacy act. Under Australian law, the commissioner has the power to issue fines of up to $1.6 million to organizations that fail to comply with the act, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Australia and the U.K. joined the United States and Israel in investigating Facebook's breach of privacy.
Earlier Thursday, Australia said it had opened a formal investigation into the tech giant amid allegations that Australian users' data was improperly shared with Cambridge Analytica. "Today I have opened a formal investigation into Facebook, following confirmation from Facebook that the information of over 300,000 Australian users may have been acquired and used without authorization," Angelene Falk, Australia's acting information commissioner and acting privacy commissioner, said. According to Falk, Australia will work with international regulatory agencies to investigate whether Facebook violated the country's privacy act. Under Australian law, the commissioner has the power to issue fines of up to $1.6 million to organizations that fail to comply with the act, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Australia and the U.K. joined the United States and Israel in investigating Facebook's breach of privacy.
Looks like Facebook is to be the whipping boy, that terrorist memo was extremely damaging and really problematic when it comes to laws regarding aiding and abetting terrorism, especially when Facebook generates far more views and ad impression during major terrorism incidents. Looks like a joint multi-nation investigation, where privacy as a wedge into the door for a much deeper investigation.
Reality is social media should be avatar based to take the sting out of it, much too damaging with real personality and ego up to being a punching bag. Sure you can data mine it when real, to manipulate people and society but it is really a bad idea because many can not handle that well. Avatars dealing with real world events is a lot safer, only people's avatars get attacked, rather than the people themselves being attacked.
Back to the terrorism aspect, if it is found that Facebook was purposefully promoting terrorism to drive views, than they should face the real penalties for that, no just a slap on the wrist because they were not actually involved in terror just promoting terror for profit. Under law, the means do not justify the ends, you pay penalties for the means and that means custodial sentences.
Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
I really hate being right. As would a lot of tech dwellers out there who would have to agree. But how many of us have steered away from the ridiculousness of Facebook in the first place because we knew something like this would happen? I donâ(TM)t have a profile Iâ(TM)ve never had one and never will.
I remember when I used to jump on IRC and family, friends, even the freaking police (feds and local) constantly said âoeDonâ(TM)t put anything about your life online because itâ(TM)s riddled full of dangersâ. Well geniuses thanks for the advice, saved my ass and my lack of participation continues to protect me from I consider so blatantly obvious that if you were one of the people who had their account scraped and then went back to FaceBook after it happened, that would make you not only a victim of consumerism but in my mind it just makes you stupid.
As for the Australian Govt. who gives a shit what are they going to do to a vastly popular corporation like FaceBook. I would like to say what FaceBook did was negligently criminal but I like to consider that world is not that crap and that FaceBook isnâ(TM)t that important. And in my case yes, as for the userbase of Facebook, get out now itâ(TM)s a so much better view from where Iâ(TM)m sitting. Oh wait, you canâ(TM)t because you probably have bucket loads of personal shit on your account that you canâ(TM)t get rid of.
All the semi-official propaganda organs are really getting their knickers in a twist over this Cambridge Analytical scandal. But the funny thing is, this is 100% business as usual for Facebook.
The problem is not a couple bad apples at Cambridge Analytica. The real problem is panoptic Big Brother surveillance and the culture that considers it lawful and ethically acceptable. The problem is Facebook itself.