FTC Reportedly OK's 3-2 $5 Billion Privacy Settlement With Facebook
The FTC approved a roughly $5 billion privacy-related settlement with Facebook in a 3-2 party line vote, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday. That amount is toward the higher end of Facebook’s projected settlement (see 1904240064). DOJ’s Civil Division is…
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reportedly reviewing the settlement. The FTC declined comment. DOJ and the company didn’t comment. The fine is a fraction of the company’s annual revenue and won’t make executives think twice about protecting user data, said House Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman David Cicilline, D-R.I. The apparent “slap-on-the-wrist” settlement shows Congress needs to investigate the FTC’s “wanton disregard” for its duties, said Freedom From Facebook co-chair Sarah Miller. Congress and state attorneys general should handle any antitrust probe of the platform, she said. The reported deal is a “capstone” for the agency’s failure to police privacy, said Open Markets Institute Director-Enforcement Sally Hubbard. The reported fine itself isn’t sufficient without business model and practices remedies, said Public Knowledge Competition Policy Counsel Charlotte Slaiman. Public Citizen called for “structural reforms and substantive terms to protect user privacy.”