Facebook Weakens Democracy & Harms Children

A former Facebook employee has told US lawmakers that the company's sites and apps "harm children, stoke division and weaken our democracy". Frances Haugen, a 37-year-old former product manager turned whistleblower, heavily criticised the company at a hearing on Capitol Hill.

Ms Haugen, a data scientist from Iowa, has worked for companies including Google and Pinterest, but said in an interview with CBS News' 60 Minutes that Facebook was "substantially worse" than anything she had seen before.

Founder Mark Zuckerberg hit back, saying recent coverage painted a "false picture" of the company. In a letter to staff, he said many of the claims "don't make any sense", pointing to their efforts in fighting harmful content, establishing transparency and creating "an industry-leading research program to under these important issues... It's difficult to see coverage that misrepresents our work and our motives."

Facebook is the world's most popular social media site. The company says it has 2.7 billion monthly active users. Hundreds of millions of people also use the company's other products, including WhatsApp and Instagram.

Ms Haugen said during her testimony, "The company's leadership knows how to make Facebook and Instagram safer, but won't make the necessary changes because they have put their astronomical profits before people".  She criticised Mark Zuckerberg for having wide-ranging control, saying that there is "no one currently holding Mark accountable but himself."

The documents leaked by Ms Haugen included  a review that suggests the peer pressure generated by Instagram led to mental health and body image problems among young girls, and in some cases, eating disorders and suicidal thoughts.
And she praised recent Facebook outage which affected users around the world. "Yesterday we saw Facebook taken off the Internet," she said. "I don't know why it went down, but I know that for more than five hours, Facebook wasn't used to deepen divides, destabilise democracies and make young girls and women feel bad about their bodies." The answer, she told senators, was congressional oversight. "We must act now," she said. 

In his letter, Zuckerberg said the research into Instagram had been wrongly characterised and that many young people had positive experiences of using the platform. He said "it's very important to me that everything we build is safe and good for kids".

Both Republican and Democratic senators said there was a need for change at Facebook which was a rare topic of agreement between the two political parties. "The damage to self-interest and self-worth inflicted by Facebook today will haunt a generation," Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal said.  Fellow Republican Dan Sullivan said the world would look back and ask "What the hell were we thinking?" in light of the revelations about Facebook's impact on children.

In a statement issued after the hearing, Facebook said it did not agree with Ms Haugen's "characterisation of the many issues she testified about". But it did agree that "it's time to begin to create standard rules for the internet... It's been 25 years since the rules for the internet have been updated, and instead of expecting the industry to make societal decisions that belong to legislators, it is time for Congress to act," the statement read.

CNN:    Facebook:     BBC:     Standard:     Newstalk:    SBS:     WIO News:

You Might Also Read: 

US Legislators Take Aim At Big Tech Companies:

 

« Data Is Your Most Valuable Asset. How Are You Protecting Yours?
Inventive Ransomware Group Focused On Healthcare Data »

CyberSecurity Jobsite
Perimeter 81

Directory of Suppliers

Syxsense

Syxsense

Syxsense brings together endpoint management and security for greater efficiency and collaboration between IT management and security teams.

ManageEngine

ManageEngine

As the IT management division of Zoho Corporation, ManageEngine prioritizes flexible solutions that work for all businesses, regardless of size or budget.

CSI Consulting Services

CSI Consulting Services

Get Advice From The Experts: * Training * Penetration Testing * Data Governance * GDPR Compliance. Connecting you to the best in the business.

MIRACL

MIRACL

MIRACL provides the world’s only single step Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) which can replace passwords on 100% of mobiles, desktops or even Smart TVs.

LockLizard

LockLizard

Locklizard provides PDF DRM software that protects PDF documents from unauthorized access and misuse. Share and sell documents securely - prevent document leakage, sharing and piracy.

Cortado Mobile Solutions

Cortado Mobile Solutions

Cortado Mobile Solutions is the manufacturer of the mobile device management solution Cortado MDM.

Baker McKenzie

Baker McKenzie

Baker & McKenzie is an international law firm. Practice areas include Data & Technology.

QATestLab

QATestLab

QATestLab is a leading International software testing company offering a full range of software testing services including security testing.

CompliancePoint

CompliancePoint

We design and implement strategies, processes & procedures to mitigate risk, reach compliance goals, protect data assets, and meet industry standards.

VNT Software

VNT Software

VNT's vision is to change the way complex IT problems are resolved by predicting business disruptions before they occur.

LIFARS

LIFARS

LIFARS is a global leader in Digital Forensics and Cyber Resiliency Services.

CyberSeek

CyberSeek

CyberSeek provides detailed, actionable data about supply and demand in the cybersecurity job market.

SaferVPN

SaferVPN

SaferVPN is a Virtual Private Network services provider offering secure encrypted access to the internet.

JobStreet.com

JobStreet.com

JobStreet is one of Asia’s leading online employment marketplaces in Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Indonesia and Vietnam.

Binary Defense

Binary Defense

Binary Defense protect businesses of all sizes through advanced cybersecurity solutions including Managed Detection and Response, Security Information and Event Management and Counterintelligence.

Network Intelligence

Network Intelligence

Network Intelligence are a global cybersecurity provider offering services across 6 broad spectrums - Assessment, BCMS, GRC, Professional Services, MSSP & Training.

Reliance Cyber

Reliance Cyber

Reliance Cyber (formerly Reliance ACSN) help to monitor and manage your organisation’s security infrastructure 24/7, so you can make sure all threats and issues are dealt with.

Island

Island

Island puts the enterprise in complete control of the browser, delivering a level of governance, visibility, and productivity that simply weren’t possible before.

Artifice Security

Artifice Security

Artifice Security will demonstrate real-world attacks on your network, web applications, infrastructure, and personnel to expose your hidden security risks.

Deloitte

Deloitte

Deloitte is a multinational professional services firm providing audit, consulting, financial advisory, risk management, tax, and related services to clients.

Flare Systems

Flare Systems

Flare proactively detects and remediates exposure across the clear & dark web, providing organizations with the equivalent of an automated cyber reconnaissance team.