For
its role in a recent data breach scandal involving Cambridge
Analytica, Facebook could be forced to pay a £500,000 fine, the UK’s
Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) announced.
The
ICO, a government data protection body, said in a statement it
launched an investigation in May 2017 looking at political parties,
data analytic companies and major social media platforms. It said it
intends to fine Facebook £500,000, the maximum it was able to
impose, for two breaches of the Data Protection Act 1998.
Information
Commissioner Elizabeth Denham said Facebook, along with UK-based data
mining company Cambridge Analytica, had been a focus of the
investigation earlier this year when it emerged the personal data of
around 87million acebook users had been compromised.
“The
ICO’s investigation concluded that Facebook contravened the law by
failing to safeguard people’s information. It also found that the
company failed to be transparent about how people’s data was
harvested by others,” the ICO stated.
Facebook
reportedly said it will respond to the allegations soon.
In
addition to the fine levied against Facebook, the ICO said it will
also begin legal proceedings against Cambridge Analytica’s parent
company SCL Elections. It has also sent out letters to 11 political
parties and notices “compelling them to agree to audits of their
data protection practices”.
Speaking
to the UK’s BBC
News, Kyle
Taylor, director of campaigning group Fair Vote UK, noted the ICO was
only able to impose a maximum £500,000 fine because they followed
old data protections laws.
“Under
new General Data Protection Regulation laws, the ICO could fine
Facebook £479 million,” he said.
Denham
suggested a large penalty was not the major goal of the
investigation: “Fines and prosecutions punish the bad actors, but
my real goal is to effect change and restore trust and confidence in
our democratic system”.
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