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Libs RAGE: Facebook Shuts Down ‘Misinformation’ Research Project Due to Privacy Concerns
Facebook disabled accounts connected with New York University’s Ad Observer project operated by Cybersecurity for Democracy, for alleged scraping of user data. Although Facebook made efforts to shut down the project in October of 2020, the company only recently “disabled the accounts, apps, Facebook pages and platform access associated with the [Ad Observer] project and its operators,” reported The Wall Street Journal.
NYU’s research examined identifying information, such as which political ads users saw and when, who paid for the ad and Facebook ad targeting data, according to the project’s website. Facebook alleged that Ad Observer research scraped user data, which it, in turn, does not disclose through research tools. Facebook sent a letter in October demanding that the project halt its research and gave the Ad Observer 45 days to comply with the company’s privacy terms, according to a recent Facebook blog. The platform only recently disabled the associated accounts.
Facebook claimed in its blog post that it disabled the accounts “in line with [its] privacy program under the [Federal Trade Comission] Order.” Samuel Levine, acting director for the Bureau of Consumer Protection for the FTC, said that Facebook passing off blame to the FTC is “misleading” and “inaccurate,” in a letter addressed to Facebook’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg.