On December 6, 2019, the FTC issued an opinion finding that Cambridge Analytica, they had engaged in deceptive practices to collect personal information from several users of Facebook for purposes of voter profiling and targeting.  In addition, the Commission found that Cambridge Analytica had engaged in deceptive practices regarding its participation in the EU-US Privacy Shield framework. According to the administrative complaint’s allegations, an app developer worked with Cambridge Analytica’s then-CEO to enable the developer’s GSRApp to collect Facebook data from app users and their Facebook friends. The complaint alleged that app users were falsely told the app would not collect users’ names or other identifiable information. The GSRApp, however, collected users’ Facebook User ID, which connects individuals to their Facebook profiles

The FTC issued a final order which would prohibit Cambridge Analytica from misrepresenting the extent to which it protects the privacy and confidentiality of personal information, and its participation in the Privacy Shield and other similar regulatory or standard-setting organizations. Moreover, the Final Order instructs Cambridge Analytica to continue to apply the Privacy Shield’s protections to personal information collected while it participated in the Privacy Shield, or to provide other protections authorized by law, or to return or delete the information. It must also delete the personal information it collected through the GSRApp.

To view the Final Order, click here.

To view the FTC’s Opinion, click here.

To read the press release, click here.