FACEBOOK chief executive Mark Zuckerberg is set to give evidence to US law-makers about the company’s ongoing data privacy scandal and how it failed to guard against other abuses of its service.
As Zuckerberg prepared for two days of testimony to Congress, his company announced technical changes intended to address privacy issues.
Facebook is beginning to alert the 87 million users whose private data may have been compromised in the Cambridge Analytica scandal. It said most of the affected users are in the US, though there are more than a million each in the Philippines, Indonesia and the UK.
All 2.2 billion Facebook users will receive a notice titled “Protecting Your Information” with a link to see what apps they use and what information they have shared.
Zuckerberg acknowledged that he made a “huge mistake” in failing to take a broad view of his company’s responsibility is in the world.
Cambridge Analytica whistleblower Christopher Wylie previously estimated that more than 50 million people were compromised by a personality quiz that collected data from users and their friends. Recently he said the true number could be even larger than 87 million.
Meanwhile Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak says he is shutting down his Facebook account. In an email to a daily newspaper Wozniak said “Apple makes money off of good products, not off of you”.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here