The Senate Commerce Committee is pushing Facebook and Cambridge Analytica to answer questions about their dealings with one another, following controversy over data the firm allegedly took from 50 million Facebook accounts.
“We appreciate that Facebook has recently taken steps to address this situation. Nevertheless, the possibility that Facebook has either not been transparent with consumers or has not been able to verify that third-party app developers are transparent with consumers is troubling,” Commerce Committee Chairman Sen. John Thune
John Randolph ThuneTrump's controversial Fed nominee stalled after Senate setback Shelton's Fed nomination on knife's edge amid coronavirus-fueled absences We need a (common) 'sense of the Senate' resolution on transition planning MORE (R-S.D.), wrote in a joint letter with Sens. Roger Wicker
Roger Frederick WickerRepublicans start turning the page on Trump era The Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by Facebook - Trump, Biden blitz battleground states Hillicon Valley: Big Tech hearing the most partisan yet | Rubio warns about foreign election interference | Trump campaign site briefly hacked MORE (R-Miss.) and Jerry Moran
Gerald (Jerry) MoranIt's time for Congress to act: Save jobs and stabilize the aerospace industry Lobbying world This World Suicide Prevention Day, let's recommit to protecting the lives of our veterans MORE (R-Kan.), who chair Commerce subcommittees.
The letter comes after Facebook announced it would suspend Cambridge Analytica from its platform.
Mark Elliot ZuckerbergOn The Money: Trump's controversial Fed nominee stalled | Economists warn of lag time between vaccine and recovery | Business group calls for national mask mandate, COVID-19 relief Hillicon Valley: Zuckerberg and Dorsey return for another hearing | House passes 5G funding bill | Twitter introduces 'fleets' Lawmakers question tech CEOs about content moderation in first post-election hearing MORE to provide more answers on the types of information that Cambridge Analytica was able to acquire from it, if the company is aware of other similar abuses of its platform and if it will notify any of the 50 million users whose data was taken by the British firm.The lawmakers asked if it agreed with Facebook’s characterization of its actions in a separate letter to Strategic Communication Laboratories (SCL) — the British parent company of Cambridge Analytica.
Cambridge Analytica has challenged Facebook’s assertion on the data. In a statement, it said that it had not "knowingly breached any of Facebook's terms of service and also provided a signed statement to confirm that all Facebook data and their derivatives had been deleted."
The lawmakers also questioned if SCL has shared the Facebook data it obtained with other companies.
Observers have questioned what Cambridge Analytica did with the data, specifically focusing on if it was distributed to either the Trump campaign or Russia. The firm has denied giving the Facebook data to both entities.
Commerce leadership are latest lawmakers to weigh in on the issue. A bevy of legislators, including Sens. Ed Markey
Ed MarkeyBiden chooses a White House chief who 'matches this moment' Markey reiterates calls for nuclear no-first-use policy amid Pentagon shake-up Biden has his work cut out for him MORE (D-Mass.), Amy Klobuchar
Amy KlobucharTop cybersecurity official ousted by Trump Lawmakers question tech CEOs about content moderation in first post-election hearing Democratic senators urge Facebook to take action on anti-Muslim bigotry MORE (D-Minn.) and John Kennedy
John Neely KennedyMORE (R-La.), have also pressed the companies on the matter.
