U.S. Close to Ending Its Facebook Privacy Probe
January 18 2019 - 8:45PM
Dow Jones News
By John D. McKinnon
WASHINGTON -- The federal government's privacy investigation
into Facebook Inc. appears to be nearing a conclusion, with the
prospect of a large fine looming for the social-media giant.
Federal Trade Commission officials have said privately that they
are close to completing their investigation, according to a person
familiar with the matter. The main issue outstanding is the
penalty, which is expected to include a substantial fine, the
person said.
The Washington Post earlier reported the advanced discussions on
Friday, saying the penalty could exceed the record-setting $22.5
fine the FTC imposed on Alphabet Inc.'s Google division in
2012.
FTC officials didn't respond to a request for comment. Like
other federal agencies, its operations have been hindered by the
partial government shutdown.
The FTC has been probing whether Facebook violated terms of an
earlier consent decree when data of tens of millions of its users
was transferred to Cambridge Analytica, a data firm that did work
for the campaign of President Trump.
Facebook suspended Cambridge Analytica from its platform company
after acknowledging that the analytics firm improperly obtained
personal data of millions of users -- a violation of Facebook's own
policies that govern how third-party developers can deploy user
data they obtained from the company.
Facebook declined to comment on Friday. In the past the company
has said that it remains strongly committed to protecting people's
information.
The FTC in 2011 charged Facebook with deceiving consumers by
telling them they could keep their information on Facebook private,
but then repeatedly allowing it to be shared and made public.
The case was settled by Facebook agreeing to give consumers
clear notice and obtain their express consent before sharing their
information beyond their privacy settings.
It also agreed to maintain a comprehensive privacy program to
protect consumers' information.
Write to John D. McKinnon at john.mckinnon@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 18, 2019 20:30 ET (01:30 GMT)
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