FTC Launches Probe Into Facebook Data Scandal

USA Today reports:

The Federal Federal Trade Commission says it’s officially investigating the potential misuse of the personal information of as many as 50 million Facebook users by Trump-connected data analysis firm Cambridge Analytica.

The agency’s action comes after it began a probe last week into the social network’s admission that it had suspended Cambridge Analytica, which had worked for the Trump presidential campaign, from operating on its platforms while investigating whether it failed to delete information it received through an academic researcher.

At the same time, privacy activists and some in Congress began calling for the agency to investigate whether the improper handling of Facebook users’ data violated a consent decree with the FTC. In 2011, Facebook agreed to a decree giving privacy protections to users’ data on the network.

The stock price of Facebook is dropping sharply right now.