Facebook's Privacy Parole Officer Faces an Immense Regulatory Task
Along with a multiple-billion dollar fine, Facebook is required to have an "outside assessor"–a sort of privacy cop–to monitor violations of users' privacy, the targeted spread of harmful content, and instances of collecting far more data than is warranted.
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Facebook faces a record-breaking fine, Ole Miss students pose with guns in front of an Emmett Till memorial, and an asteroid passes "impressively close" to the Earth.
The Authors of Offensive Posts in Secret Border Patrol Facebook Group Have Yet to Be Punished
The agency won't say how many employees have been disciplined or warned in the ongoing scandal over offensive social media posts.
Facebook's Promise to Moderate Comes Up Short in Private Groups
Dozens of hateful posts in a secret Facebook group for current and former Border Patrol agents raise questions about how well if at all the company is policing disturbing postings and comments made outside of public view.
Stories You Might Have Missed This Week
Alabama prosecutors drop charges against Marshae Jones, Facebook will ban anti-voting ads, and the Oscars may be getting a little less white.
'A Pervasive Culture of Cruelty': What a Secret Facebook Group Reveals About the U.S. Border Patrol
In the group, current and former Border Patrol agents joked about the death of migrants, posted vulgar images of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and shared racist memes.
Viewfinder: Protests Erupt Over Philadelphia Cops' Alleged Racist Facebook Posts
Demonstrators gather in the council chamber to protest at Philadelphia City Hall on June 20th, 2019, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
A Supreme Court Decision Could Have Implications for Social Media Free Speech
The court ruled that First Amendment protections don't apply to a corporation that operates a public access channel in New York.
The Trump Admin Won't Join an Initiative to Curb Social Media Extremism, Citing Free Speech
Experts say the initiative does not "have much teeth to it" but that it does not run contrary to the First Amendment.
San Francisco Is Voting Today to Ban the City's Use of Facial Recognition Technology
The vote comes amid concerns that the technology violates civil liberties and is subject to racial biases.
Gen Z'ers Are More Cautious Online Than Previous Generations
They grew up with phones in their hands—and learned early not to blindly trust the Internet.
What It's Like to Grow Up Surrounded by Fragments of Your Past
With access to seemingly unlimited social archives, young people still understand nostalgia. It might just be a bit different from their parents' version.
The FTC Is Fining Facebook Over Data Privacy Concerns. Users Don't Seem to Care.
The tech giant announced the $3-5 billion fine alongside an 8 percent annual usership increase.
Why Is Trump's Department of Housing and Urban Development Suing Facebook?
The dispute between HUD and Facebook over how advertisers target ads looks to be coming to a head. How did we get here?
Will Elizabeth Warren's Antitrust Plan to Break Up Big Tech Work?
The Democratic presidential hopeful has proposed dismantling Apple, Facebook, Google, and Amazon monopolies.
No, Fake News From Facebook Did Not Elect Trump
New research finds social media is not the main driver of why so many people fall for misinformation about candidates and issues.
Millions of Mosque Shooting Videos Were Uploaded to Facebook. Who's to Blame?
Facebook and YouTube rushed to remove violent videos. An expert discusses why we need a "reckoning" for online content moderation.
Facebook Announces Plans to Stop Discrimination in Housing, Employment, and Credit Advertising
The company announced Tuesday that it would stop allowing advertisers of housing, jobs, and credit to target people based on characteristics such as race, gender, age, national origin, family status, and disability.
Growing Up on Social Media, We Learned About Ourselves. Facebook Learned More.
A Facebook event planned seven years in advance became observational comedy about the weird geography of a world built by Palo Alto coders.
What Happens if the Law Starts Treating Facebook and Twitter Like Traditional Publishers?
The little-known provision that empowers tech companies to experiment with new ways of imposing and enforcing norms on new sites of discourse could be changed.
Where Does Antitrust Law Fit in When Consumer Privacy Is at Stake?
A landmark decision in Germany's antitrust authority determined that Facebook could not combine data from its other entities without user consent.
A Movement for Personal Data Protection From Tech Giants Rises in China
New developments in the private sector provide a striking contrast from China's perceived status as a surveillance state—even as the government continues to monitor its citizens.
How Facebook Helped the Anti-Vaxxer Movement Go Viral
New reports have implicated Facebook and other social media platforms for their role in the spread of anti-vaccine propaganda.
People Who Quit Facebook Are Less Anxious
A new study finds those who deactivate Facebook are happier than those who don't. But there are reasons to believe this might not be true of the elderly.