Social media users treated as 'experimental rats,' EU data watchdog says as he urges more changes from Facebook
Social media users treated as 'experimental rats,' EU
data watchdog says as he urges more changes from Facebook
Facebook needs to make sure its new privacy rules are
done in "practice and not only on paper," the European Union's top
data watchdog told CNBC.
The social network has unveiled a raft of new tools since
the Cambridge Analytica scandal broke.
Giovanni Buttarelli, the European Data Protection
Supervisor (EDPS), criticized the data collection practices of social media
firms.
By Arjun Kharpal April 6, 2018 CNBC.com
Facebook needs to make sure the new tools it has
introduced to help safeguard user data in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica
scandal is done in "practice and not only on paper," the European
Union's top data watchdog told CNBC.
The social network has unveiled a raft of new tools since
news of the fiasco broke, with the aim of helping users understand and control
how their data are used.
Giovanni Buttarelli, the European Data Protection
Supervisor (EDPS), said Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg needs to ensure these
changes are done in practice.
"I take note of what Zuckerberg has said recently,
he said that he takes care of the privacy right. The question is they should do
it in practice and not only on paper," Buttarelli told CNBC in a phone
interview on Thursday.
Facebook revealed Wednesday that 87 million users were
affected by the scandal which saw a quiz app scrape the data from profiles on
the social network and pass them over to political consultancy Cambridge Analytica.
Buttarelli criticized social media firms' data collection
practices.
"There are days when you have the impression people
are treated as battery animals or experimental rats. We are treated as a farm
for data. We are in within a walled garden and every single action is
monitored," Buttarelli said.
'Far-reaching consequences'
The EDPS is in charge of making sure that data are being
handled correctly within EU institutions like the Commission. But it is also
part of a working group made up of the data protection authorities from various
member states
Buttarelli said data protection authorities from across
the EU will meet next week. Some already have ongoing investigations into the
misuse of data, not just relating to the Cambridge Analytica scandal, but other
companies too. The U.K.'s data watchdog, the Information Commissioner's Office,
is looking into data analytics for political purposes and said in a statement
on Thursday that it is investigating 30 organizations including Facebook.
"Facebook has been co-operating with us and, while I
am pleased with the changes they are making, it is too early to say whether
they are sufficient under the law," Elizabeth Denham, the information
commissioner, said.
Buttarelli said there are likely to be far-reaching
consequences which could include punishments for companies.
"I'm expecting far-reaching consequences on the
broader scale. There is a need of a change of culture," he told CNBC.
Last month, European Parliament President Antonio Tajani
invited Zuckerberg to testify in front of lawmakers and give reassurances that
EU citizens' data were not used to "manipulate democracy."
Antonio Tajani
✔
@EP_President
We’ve invited Mark
Zuckerberg to the European Parliament. Facebook needs to clarify before the
representatives of 500 million Europeans that personal data is not being used
to manipulate democracy.
8:32 AM - Mar 20, 2018
Buttarelli said it would be "wise" for
Zuckerberg to honor the invitation from Tajani.
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