Facebook and shady knowledge marketing company Cambridge Analytica are facing backlash from a recent scandal. And all social networks feel the heat.
When the story came to light, millions of Americans learned that by answering an undeniable questionnaire on Facebook, they had given up their non-public knowledge to feed a set of rules that they then used for political propaganda purposes.
While the scandal is indeed the biggest blow to Facebook’s reputation to date, it is in fact not the first. In the past, the company had been involved in controversies over the spread of fake news, the spread of racist content, and the live broadcast of murders. But this time, the PR crisis came at a tangible cost: $60 billion, or 11. 4% of the company’s stock, vanished two days after the story was announced.
This huge monetary loss is not just the result of a scandal, it is a symptom of a deeper crisis: investors know that the trust with which users once viewed Facebook and other social platforms will be restored.
Mark Zuckerberg’s far-fetched attempt to limit the damage (taking up duty for mishandling user data, charting the way forward) is unlikely to regain acceptance from users or investors.
The U. S. Federal Trade Commission, which ensures corporations don’t violate its privacy policies, can fine Facebook millions of dollars if it finds it has violated the protocol, Bloomberg reports. soaking in his boots. As a result, shares on Twitter fell along with those on Facebook, falling as much as 11 percent on Tuesday, the highest since July 2017, according to Bloomberg. Snapchat shares also fell about 3. 7 percent over the past five days, after a big drop on Tuesday.
Users are unlikely to abandon Facebook altogether, as WhatsApp founder Brian Acton requested. Facebook is too embedded in the lives of billions of people. For some, connecting to the Internet is synonymous with connecting to Facebook.
But now, people’s attitude towards social media will be different. Most users already knew a little about the lack of privacy on social media, but until now, cybersecurity is basically theoretical, abstract.
Now that other people know that your page likes, quiz responses, and other frivolities may have played a role in the president’s election, they’ll take it all more seriously. And all social media platforms, without exception, will have to take this. in account.