Senators Question Zuckerberg Testimony After Latest Privacy Concerns
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg wasn't forthcoming enough when he testified before Congress in April (see 1804100054 and 1804110065), given new revelations about the platform’s data practices (see 1806040055), lawmakers told us. The testimony “might have been technically correct, but it was not comprehensive," said Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va. "I would hope that they would realize more transparency is better, and that’s not been their approach so far."
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“I’m not suggesting [Zuckerberg] didn’t tell the truth, but he didn’t tell everything, because more just keeps coming out,” said Sen. John Kennedy, R-La. Reports last week said Facebook allegedly provided users’ personal data to some 60 American and Chinese device makers, including Huawei, which law enforcement targeted as a potential national security threat. Facebook played down the concerns, saying it’s phasing out use of the device-integrated application programming interfaces (APIs) that drew the criticism.
Lawmakers blasted the company for lacking urgency in answering follow-up questions to the testimony. The Facebook chief deferred dozens of questions while on Capitol Hill. A spokesman emailed Friday that Zuckerberg spent more than 10 hours answering the lawmakers’ questions and said the partnerships in question were “highly visible for years -- with many manufacturers advertising these features.” With fewer users relying on the APIs, the platform “proactively” announced their phaseout, he said. “We look forward to responding to lawmakers’ questions.”
One legislator waiting for answers is Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John Thune, R-S.D., who along with ranking member Bill Nelson, D-Fla., peppered Zuckerberg with another round of questions last week. “There’s still a lot of unanswered questions, and they haven’t responded to our questions for the record from that hearing yet, and now this new reporting raises other questions about that testimony, so we’ve got a letter in, and we’re trying to get answers,” Thune told reporters. “They still have some explaining to do.”
Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., told us Congress needs to take a broader view, so the conversation isn't just about this company. Congress needs to address the evolution of social media, he said: “We need to make it less about Facebook and more about social media, so we’re not taking a fairly limited view.” Data use and privacy policies need industry re-examination, he said. Policymakers can then address what industry doesn’t deal with through compliance and code of conduct measures, he said. Tillis previously said there should be an online platform business code of conduct (see 1805140066).
Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., joined Kennedy in introducing a bipartisan response to data privacy, the Social Media Privacy Protection and Consumer Rights Act (S-2728) (see 1804240046). She noted Zuckerberg testified he supports data breach rules. “The way we get more and more dribbles of news about more and more release of data is really concerning,” Klobuchar told us. “This just cries out not just for headline after headline but for action from Congress.”
Kennedy told us consumers are free to decide whether to offer Facebook large amounts of data, but users should have access to “clear, unmistakable terms in plain English,” specifically about data-sharing. “It’s not complicated,” he said. “They need to look people in the eye and say, ‘Here’s what you get. Our service is free. Here’s what we get.’” He’s confused why Facebook didn’t back S-2728 like it did Klobuchar’s Honest Ads Act, S-1989 (see 1805240052). “Facebook ought to be on Amy and I’s bill like wet on water,” he said.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., who introduced privacy legislation with Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass. (see 1804100054), told us there are many more questions about the accuracy and credibility of Zuckerberg’s testimony: “He and Facebook have a lot of serious questions to answer.”