Facebook is facing a “record-setting” fine from the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) over its handling of user data and privacy violations.
According to a report in The New York Times last night, the FTC “is in the advanced stages of its investigation into whether Facebook violated privacy rules and is expected to seek large fines from the company”. The highest financial penalty ever imposed by FTC was $22.5 million on Google in 2012 for privacy violations, and the Facebook fine is “expected to be in the excess of that”, according to The Washington Post.
In December, Facebook refuted a New York Times report that claimed it allowed large technology companies and popular apps like Netflix or Spotify access to its users’ personal information.