Hello there! 🙂
I’m sure you have heard various interesting information about Facebook-Cambridge Analytica scandal. Let’s see what does it really means.
What was Cambridge Analytica?
Cambridge Analytica Ltd. was a British political consulting firm which uses data mining, data brokerage and data analysis with strategic communication during the election processes. The firm maintained offices in London, New York City and Washington, DC. CA helps political campaigns reach potential voters online[2]. The firm combines data from multiple sources, including online information and polling to build profiles of voters. After that, it uses computer programs to predict voter behavior which could be influenced through various advertisements aimed at the voters.
In case if you have noticed, the heading says ‘what was CA?’. Unfortunately, due to this facebook-CA scandal, the negative media coverage has left it with no clients and mounting legal fees.
“As a result, it has been determined that it is no longer viable to continue operating the business, which left Cambridge Analytica with no realistic alternative to placing the company into administration[1].”
OK! So what exactly happened?
Facebook-CA data scandal was one of the major political scandals in 2018. It was revealed that Cambridge Analytica had harvested the personal data of millions of people’s Facebook profiles without their consent or knowledge and used it for political purposes.
As claimed by Facebook, Cambridge Analytica has received all these user data from Aleksandr Kogan, a lecturer at the University of Cambridge. Kogan has developed an app called “thisisyourdigitallife” which offers personality predictions to users who use it while calling itself a research tool for psychologists.
What happens when using this app is that it asks users to log into their Facebook accounts. As part of the login process, it asks for access to users’ Facebook profiles, locations, what they have liked, and most importantly their friends’ data as well. Kogan has sent these data to CA without user consent or permission which kind of a big deal.
Paul Grewal, a vice president and general counsel of Facebook has said,
“Although Kogan gained access to this information in a legitimate way and through the proper channels that governed all developers on Facebook at that time, he did not subsequently abide by our rules.”
What does this have to do with politics? (O.o)
We all know Trump right? 😉 During 2016 election, the Trump campaign has hired Cambridge Analytica to run data operations. And also Trump’s chief strategist happens to be the vice president of Cambridge Analytica’s board. The firm offered tools that could identify the personalities of American voters and influence their behavior [3].
According to the New York Times, the gathered data included details on user identities, friend networks and “likes”. The idea is to map personality traits based on what people had liked on Facebook and the use that information to target audiences with digital ads. Spooky isn’t it?
[4]
Various political organizations have used this information to attempt to influence public opinion. Political events for which politicians paid CA to use information include the following:
- 2015 and 2016 campaigns of United States politicians Donal Trump and Ted Cruz
- 2016 Brexit vote
- 2018 Mexican general election [2]
Not to confuse though that the CA incident was not a data breach, because Facebook allows researches to have access to your data for academic purposes – and users consent to this access when they create a Facebook account.
Wait, What? :O
When you log in to an app using your Facebook account, the developer asks for access to information that it contains. Sometimes it’s just name and email address. Other times, it can be your locations and friend information too. Facebook says its rules specify that developers are prohibited to share the information they receive with any kind of firm [5]. It was all Kogan’s fault that those data got into CA’s hand.
What is Facebook doing in response?
First thing first. Dr. Kogan’s app was banned and removed from that site. It said it had demanded and received certification that the data has been destroyed. In a further step, Facebook has hired a digital forensics team to determine the accuracy of the claims [3]. Zuckerberg said, 
“We have a responsibility to protect your data, And if we can’t then we don’t deserve to serve you. Life is learning from mistakes. At the end of the day, this is my responsibility. I started this place, I run it, I’m responsible.”
Facebook planned to restrict how much access developers have to your information. It limits the information it gives apps to your name, photo and email address. It has also planned to revoke third-party application’s access to your data if you haven’t used it for three months.
What is my role in this?
There isn’t much. Maybe this hasn’t affected you. Maybe you have not downloaded Kogan’s app to have had your information accessed. But it is always good to be prepared. Security must be the starting point, not an afterthought.
You should check your privacy settings on Facebook and consider these ways to stop sharing your data with Facebook. And if you’re really unhappy, you could also join #DeleteFacebook campaign. Think twice before giving access to third-party applications. There are many kinds of apps developed. How will your face look when you’re 40? How to find your girlfriends location without her knowing? You know what. You will look exactly the same when you’re 40 and if you really want to know your gfs location GIVE HER A CALL 😀 . Don’t encourage these third-party applications to continue to do this kind of scams.
Keep in touch for more cool stuff! 🙂
References
[1] – https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2018/may/02/cambridge-analytica-closing-down-after-facebook-row-reports-say
[2] – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cambridge_Analytica
[3] – https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/19/technology/facebook-cambridge-analytica-explained.html
[4] – https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2018/3/23/17151916/facebook-cambridge-analytica-trump-diagram
[5] – https://www.cnet.com/news/facebook-cambridge-analytica-data-mining-and-trump-what-you-need-to-know/
CREATIVE MESS 