After propelling the success of Facebook from his Harvard University dorm residence 14 years ago, CEO Mark Zuckerberg made a lasting impression on the seats of Congress this past week.
Standing up for the estimated $500 billion net worth company, Zuckerberg sat among the Senate Judiciary and Commerce committees to testify the sites improper handling of user’s data, which in turn resulted in the invasion of privacy.
Think of it like this, imagine being in the midst of scrolling through your timeline, liking posts, and ultimately becoming nonchalantly unaware that your privacy is being ambushed. To question, would this invasive approach be shocking or relieving to know? Either way, the right to privacy seems to be lacking.
Furthermore, back in 2013, Ex-Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) employee Edward Snowden released classified information from the National Security Agency (NSA), detailing that the invasive agency collected information from U.S. users through their phones and Internet. Deemed a hero or whistleblower, Snowden confirmed majority of everyone’s preconceived notions about the involvement of the U.S. government within homes.
In reality, this approach should be nothing new to conclude, instead, it should stand as additional evidence to add to the pile of growing distrust in the era of digital technology.
Despite the act of free solicited content, it’s at the expense of what? Privacy. Nonetheless, the middle-aged company, Facebook, decided to partner with British political firm, Cambridge Analytica, in efforts to expand the brand. Yet, the political firm not only plummeted in market value but most likely in patrons as well.
As of April 4, Facebook reported, “the political consultancy Cambridge Analytica improperly gained access to the personal information of up to 87 million users, 71 million of whom are Americans.”
Though dealing with scrutiny from his own platform and the Senate, during his Congressional testimony, Zuckerberg somewhat took accountability for the actions done under his domain, “I started Facebook, I run it, and I’m responsible for what happens here. We’re undergoing a broader philosophical shift about how we view our role as a company. For the first 12 and 13 years, we were focused on building tools. It’s not enough to just build tools. We need to make sure that they’re used for good.”
However, this doesn’t completely dismiss his stance on privacy. In 2010 the Facebook CEO spoke on the topic with TechCrunch. “People have really gotten comfortable not only sharing more information — and different kinds — but more openly with more people. And that social norm is just something that’s evolved over time. And we view it as our role in the system to constantly be innovating and updating what our system is, to reflect what the current social norms are.”
As politicians continue to debate the question of whether there’s right to privacy for users, Facebook and other websites withhold the answer.
Courtesy of Variety.com
Courtesy of CNET.com
