Facebook withholding data on its anti-disinformation efforts, EU says

Facebook withholding data on its anti-disinformation efforts, EU says

Facebook has repeatedly withheld key data on its alleged efforts to clamp down on disinformation ahead of the European elections, the EU's executive has said. EU sources said the sector was not raising its game but that Facebook was by far the worst offender of those being assessed, offering only "patchy" information on its efforts. "It is very difficult for us to see if they are doing what they should be doing," said a source. "It is vital that the platforms treat EU member states equally, and ensure that any relevant tools are available across the Union."It noted that Facebook had fact-checking partners "in only eight member states covering seven languages". "Twitter, too, did not report on any additional efforts in January to improve ad placement, or information on the implementation of its Ads Transparency Centre in the EU," they said.

Some major Android apps are still sending data directly to Facebook

in addition The report builds on a similar investigation from PI last December that first revealed that big-name Android apps were sending data to Facebook without a user's consent and without proper disclosure. On Android, Facebook has long collected sensitive user data such as contact logs, call histories, SMS data, and real-time location data, for the purpose of informing its ad targeting and improving features like friend suggestions. Similarly, most of the operators of the iOS apps highlighted in the WSJ report also ceased using Facebook's analytics and developer tools to collect sensitive user data. "Apps relay on the Facebook SDK to integrate their product with Facebook services, like Facebook's login and ad tracking tools. However, Facebook places all responsibility on apps to ensure that the data they send to Facebook has been collected lawfully," reads PI's report.

Facebook withholding data on its anti-disinformation efforts, EU says

Facebook has repeatedly withheld key data on its alleged efforts to clamp down on disinformation ahead of the European elections, the EU's executive has said. EU sources said the sector was not raising its game but that Facebook was by far the worst offender of those being assessed, offering only "patchy" information on its efforts. "It is very difficult for us to see if they are doing what they should be doing," said a source. "It is vital that the platforms treat EU member states equally, and ensure that any relevant tools are available across the Union."It noted that Facebook had fact-checking partners "in only eight member states covering seven languages". "Twitter, too, did not report on any additional efforts in January to improve ad placement, or information on the implementation of its Ads Transparency Centre in the EU," they said.

as informed in The report builds on a similar investigation from PI last December that first revealed that big-name Android apps were sending data to Facebook without a user's consent and without proper disclosure. On Android, Facebook has long collected sensitive user data such as contact logs, call histories, SMS data, and real-time location data, for the purpose of informing its ad targeting and improving features like friend suggestions. Similarly, most of the operators of the iOS apps highlighted in the WSJ report also ceased using Facebook's analytics and developer tools to collect sensitive user data. "Apps relay on the Facebook SDK to integrate their product with Facebook services, like Facebook's login and ad tracking tools. However, Facebook places all responsibility on apps to ensure that the data they send to Facebook has been collected lawfully," reads PI's report.

Some major Android apps are still sending data directly to Facebook