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| Reports say US regulats are near an agreement on a record penalty against Facebook for privacy violations (AFP Photo/LOIC VENANCE) |
Washington (AFP) - A US investigation into privacy violations by Facebook could result in a record fine running to billions of dollars, media reports said Friday.
The Federal
Trade Commission is negotiating the terms of the penalty stemming from its
investigation into whether Facebook violated a 2011 settlement with the
regulator on protecting user data, the Washington Post and New York Times said,
citing unnamed sources.
The FTC
reopened its investigation following revelations last year that personal data
from tens of millions of Facebook users was hijacked by the political
consultancy Cambridge Analytica as it worked on Donald Trump's presidential
campaign.
The 2011
court-approved agreement required Facebook to notify users when it shares data
with third parties and bars the social network from deceptive practices.
According
to the Times, the penalty for violating the agreement could be some $41,000 per
violation, and that the FTC may potentially levy that amount for each individual
affected.
The Post
said the settlement could be in the range of $2 billion.
A
settlement would need to be negotiated by the FTC staff and then approved by
the commissioners. If there is no agreement the parties could contest the
matter in court.
Until now,
the biggest fine imposed by the FTC was $22.5 million against Google for
violations of an agreement to protect consumer data, according to the reports.
Privacy
activists have pressed for a hefty penalty against Facebook to demonstrate that
the regulator is serious about enforcing its consent agreements.
Facebook
did not respond to an AFP query on the reports.
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