It is an interview with Facebook and the CNN channel. On Wednesday, Mark Zuckerberg admitted “errors” adding that there was “Still to do” to improve its service following the improper leakage of personal data of millions of users by the company Cambridge Analytica.
After a long silence, Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg finally said “Sorry” and recognized “errors” after days of controversy over the misuse of personal data of millions of users by the British firm Cambridge Analytica.
“This constituted a very important breach of trust and I am very sorry for what happened. Our responsibility is to ensure that this does not happen again, ” said the official in an interview on Wednesday night to CNN, finally making a long-awaited apology.
Mark Zuckerberg also said he “would be happy” to appear before the US Congress.
Even as the scandal was resounding, Zuckerberg had been silent for the last few days before breaking his silence earlier on Wednesday via a post on his Facebook page.
He acknowledged “mistakes” and his “responsibility in what is happening” on Facebook, but without apologizing.
Zuckerberg also promised to limit the access to personal data by third-party applications – such as the one implicated in the scandal that splashes the social network – and to comb them through. He also promised to inform all users whose data could have been used without their consent.
Facebook has been in turmoil since Cambridge Analytica (CA) is accused of recovering data from 50 million users without their consent to develop a software to predict and influence voter’s votes, in order to weigh Donald Trump’s presidential campaign in 2016.
Cambridge Analytica (CA) would have taken advantage of a third-party application, “Thisisyourdigitallife”, developed by the Russian researcher Aleksandr Kogan, to recover more data, exploiting, according to a former Facebook executive, a flaw that the social network was aware of.
When the data left Facebook’s servers, they lost the knowledge and control of what was done with that data,” said former Facebook operations manager Sandy Parakilas before a British parliamentary committee.
Was Facebook aware?
Particularly zealous about his own computer security, Facebook had however only “little means to detect possible abuse in the use of these data, he insisted. Worst thing he said that, “Facebook was aware of what was happening and did not warn anyone.”
In the same vein, Max Schrems, an Austrian lawyer and data protection activist, said Facebook knew about it as early as 2011.
Max Schrems said he had a meeting in 2012 with representatives of the US giant to discuss the concerns raised by the use of third-party applications, but they had ensured there was no problem.
“They explicitly said that from their point of view, using the network you consent to a situation where other people can install an application and collect your data,” Max Schrems told.
Facebook had no way of knowing if the companies receiving the information adhered to the rules of protection of personal data, he noted.
#deletefacebook
The case could cost the king of social networks big: American law firms announced on Wednesday that they have filed complaints and petitions in the name of citizens and shareholders, and at the same time Facebook faces a campaign of calls to unsubscribe (#deletefacebook) .
Questioned in the scandal, the developer of “Thisisyourdigitallife” defended Wednesday for acting illegally, accusing CA and Facebook of wanting to discard it.
“We thought we were doing something perfectly normal,” said Aleksandr Kogan”. Cambridge Analytica assured us that everything was perfectly legal and in accordance with the terms of use” of Facebook, according to BBC Kogan is a psychology lecturer at the University of Cambridge.
British MPs want explanations
Mark Zuckerberg was asked to come and explain to British MPs who gave him until Monday to answer. The young American billionaire has also been invited to speak in front of the European Parliament which will fully investigate this case.
Subsidiary of the London-based Strategic Communications Laboratories (SCL), a marketing company based in London, CA is considered to be close to the British Conservative Party. Founded by Steve Bannon, Donald Trump’s former advisor, he has offices in Washington, New York and London.
A Downing Street spokesman said the Defense Ministry had a contract with SCL, but it ended in 2014.
Suspicions “very disturbing” believes Theresa May
Prime Minister of UK, Theresa May has described CA’s “very worrisome” suspicions and urged it to cooperate fully with the investigation launched by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK’s independent data protection authority.
CA announced Tuesday the suspension of his boss, Alexander Nix, following “comments” of the latter recorded by Channel 4 News , as well as other “allegations” against him, which “do not represent the values ” of society.
