introduce updates to protect data over the past few years.
According to a and President Donald Trump. After the fiasco became common knowledge, s, politicians, and government agencies felt Facebook improperly interfered with the results of the 2016 presidential election.
Why Facebook's Data Sharing Was So Controversial
As part of the settlement agreement, Meta denied any wrongdoing in handling data and sharing that data with Cambridge Analytica. "We pursued a settlement as it's in the best interest of our community and shareholders," a company spokesperson told CNBC. "Over the last three years, we revamped our approach to privacy and implemented a comprehensive privacy program."
Meta's proposed settlement agreement is still pending court approval. Since the class action lawsuit was filed in California's Northern District, judges from that district must review the settlement agreement and give it the green light. Class-action settlement agreements earn court approval without incident most of the time.
Besides the class action settlement, Facebook has agreed to pay $5 billion to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission following the scandal. In response to a similar inquiry, Facebook has also paid $100 million to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Both cases arose because the company had previously agreed to inform s when their data was being shared with third parties. FTC and SEC findings alleged that Facebook either failed to do so or allegedly used misleading tactics.
Meta has argued that it provides a better experience with personalized ments and tracking and is great for small businesses. But the company shared data in the 2010s with a consulting firm aiding political campaigns, not with advertising agencies. That prompted worldwide scrutiny, leading to Facebook's massive $725 million payout to affected class .
Source: CNBC