INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Facebook Inc will pay a record-breaking $5 billion fine to resolve a government probe into its privacy practices and the social media giant
will restructure its approach to privacy, the US Federal Trade Commission said on Wednesday.The FTC voted 3-2 along party lines to adopt the
settlement, which requires court approval
Democrats opposed it, saying it did not go far enough or require a large enough fine."Despite repeated promises to its billions of users
worldwide that they could control how personal information is shared Facebook undermined consumers' choices," FTC Chairman Joe Simons, a
Republican, said in a statement.Democratic FTC Commissioner Rohit Chopra said the penalty provided "blanket immunity" for Facebook
executives "and no real restraints on Facebook's business model" and does "not fix the core problems that led to these
violations".Facebook agreed to pay an additional $100 million to settle allegations that it misled investors about the seriousness of the
misuse of users' data, the Securities and Exchange Commission said on Wednesday.The FTC said that Facebook's data policy was deceptive to
"tens of millions" of people who used its facial recognition tool and also violated its rules against deceptive practices when it did not
disclose phone numbers collected for a security feature would also be used for advertising.Under the settlement, Facebook's board will
create an independent privacy committee that removes "unfettered control by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg over decisions affecting user
Slaughter said the $5 billion penalty may be less than Facebook's gains from violating users' privacy."Until we address Facebook's core
financial incentives for risking our personal privacy and national security, we will not be able to prevent these problems from happening
again," Mr Chopra said.The FTC Republican majority argued the settlement "significantly diminishes Mr
Zuckerberg's power -- something no government agency, anywhere in the world, has thus far accomplished".The Republican commissioners led
by Mr Simons said if the FTC had gone to court "it is highly unlikely that any judge would have imposed a civil penalty even remotely close
to this one".They called the settlement -- in light of what the FTC might have been able to win in a court fight -- "a complete home
run".The Republicans noted that Mr Zuckerberg and other Facebook executives must sign quarterly certifications attesting to the company's
privacy practices.The FTC said Mr Zuckerberg or others filing a false certification could face civil and criminal penalties.Facebook also is
barred from asking for email passwords to other services when consumers sign up
It is barred from using telephone numbers obtained in a security feature, like two-factor authentication, for advertising and must get user
consent to use data from facial recognition technology.Facebook said the deal worked out with the FTC would give the company "a
comprehensive new framework for protecting people's privacy," and that it expected to find additional problems as it initiates a review of
its systems."Going forward, our approach to privacy controls will parallel our approach to financial controls, with a rigorous design
process and individual certifications intended to ensure that our controls are working - and that we find and fix them when they are not,"
Facebook General Counsel Colin Stretch said in a statement.Senator Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut, called the settlement "a
fig leaf" that offers "no accountability for top executives.""By relying on a monetary fine to deter Facebook, the FTC has failed to heed
Facebook has already written this penalty down as a one-time-cost in return for the extraordinary profits reaped from a decade of data
misuse," said Mr Blumenthal.FTC decided to settle probeThe settlement stems from Facebook's alleged violations of a previous FTC
settlement order over privacy issues.Mr Slaughter said the FTC should have taken Facebook and Mr Zuckerberg to court.Mr Slaughter also
criticised the FTC's decision to grant Facebook and its executives a release from liability for any claims that prior to June 12, 2019 it
violated the earlier FTC settlement as "far too broad" and said the FTC failed "to impose any substantive restrictions on Facebook's
collection and use of data from or about users."Mr Chopra added that by "settling the commission -- and the public -- may never find out
what Facebook knows It is difficult to conclude that the commission got the better end of the bargain".The FTC has been investigating
allegations Facebook inappropriately shared information belonging to 87 million users with the now-defunct British political consulting firm
Cambridge Analytica.The FTC also said Wednesday that Cambridge's former CEO Alexander Nix and former app developer Aleksandr Kogan, had
agreed to a settlement with the FTC that will restrict how they conduct business in the future.The US Justice Department said on Tuesday it
was opening a broad investigation of major digital technology firms into whether they engage in anticompetitive practices, the strongest
sign the Trump administration is stepping up scrutiny of Big Tech.The review will look into "whether and how market-leading online platforms
have achieved market power and are engaging in practices that have reduced competition, stifled innovation, or otherwise harmed consumers,"
the Justice Department said in a statement
It did not identify specific companies but said the review would consider concerns raised about "search, social media, and some retail
services online" -- an apparent reference to Alphabet Inc, Amazon.com Inc and Facebook Inc, and potentially Apple Inc.Get Breaking news,
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