Facebook fined £50,000 over Cambridge Analytical data security scandal
The ICO will fine Facebook £500,000 for breaching the Data Protection Act 1998. The fine comes following investigations into the misuse of Facebook users’ data during political campaigns. According to the ICO, the goal of the fines and subsequent prosecutions have a wider goal – to restore trust in the tech industry and democratic institutions, while affecting long-term change.
The ICO’s investigation began in May 2017 after suspicion arose that both sides of the EU referendum had misused personal data in their campaigns. An app, discovered to have been used to harvest the data of 50 million Facebook users, was discovered by the ICO during investigations.
Since the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) came into force, social networks have come under heavy scrutiny for their handling and management of the personal data of their users. The ICO has called for social platforms to reflect on their responsibilities to the public with regards to the handling and protection of personal data.
Facebook has responded that they will review the ICO’s report and expressed regret at not doing due research into Cambridge Analytica during the data mining scandal.
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