More than a month after the Cambridge Analytica data leak issue and Facebook still doesn’t know what data was stolen. The social networking firm has a long way to go before it finally concludes this big mess.
Facebook suspended the data firm’s access to its apps long back. Even then Cambridge Analytica was able to collect the personal data of over 87 million Facebook users without their consent. The social networking giant is still figuring out how big the problem is.
In a conversation at Recode’s Code Conference in Palos Verdes, Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook’s COO said, “To this day, we still don’t actually know what data Cambridge Analytica had.” The company is yet to conduct the audit of data that was collected by Cambridge Analytica.
The data firm was reportedly used by Donald Trump’s presidential campaign during 2016 election. The audit was put on hold when the UK government intervened to conduct their own investigation. The social media firm needs to re-initiate the audit again.
Facebook’s COO was asked if Facebook employees that helped the Trump campaign noticed any kind of suspicion data set. To which, Sandberg answered, “No, not really.” Understanding exactly what data of 87 million Facebook users was with Cambridge Analytica is critically important. It will determine Facebook’s role in the 2016 US Presidential election.
Sandberg also replied to Apple CEO’s criticism. Apple’s Tim Cook had criticized Facebook for its data troubles. Sandberg said, “Facebook respectfully disagrees with Tim Cook’s critique.” She also recalled Zuckerberg's response that Cook’s comment was extremely glib.
She also highlighted that Facebook would draw more questions regulators if it makes more multi-billion dollar acquisition deals. She said, “Certainly as you get bigger there’s more scrutiny of acquisitions — and there should be.” A major acquisition may be allowed by the regulators as long as the acquired company is not related to Facebook’s core business.