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Tag: Mark Zuckerberg

  • Zuckerberg says Facebook could have done more to prevent misuse

    Facebook Inc Chief Executive, Mark Zuckerberg, told Congress on Monday that the social media network should have done more to prevent itself and its members’ data being misused and offered a broad apology to lawmakers.

    His conciliatory tone precedes two days of Congressional hearings where Zuckerberg is set to answer questions about Facebook user data being improperly appropriated by a political consultancy and the role the network played in the U.S. 2016 election.

    “We didn’t take a broad enough view of our responsibility, and that was a big mistake,” he said in remarks released by the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee on Monday.

    “It was my mistake, and I’m sorry. I started Facebook, I run it, and I’m responsible for what happens here.”

    Surrounded by tight security wearing dark suit and a purple tie rather than his trademark hoodie, Zuckerberg was meeting with lawmakers on Capitol Hill on Monday ahead of his scheduled appearance before two Congressional committees on Tuesday and Wednesday.

    He did not respond to questions as he entered and left a meeting with Sen. Bill Nelson, the top Democrat on the Senate Commerce Committee.

    He is expected to meet Sen. John Thune, the Commerce Committee’s Republican chairman, later in the day, among others.

    Top of the agenda in the forthcoming hearings will be Facebook’s admission that the personal information of up to 87 million users, mostly in the United States, may have been improperly shared with political consultancy Cambridge Analytica.

    But lawmakers are also expected to press him on a range of issues, including the 2016 election.

    “It’s clear now that we didn’t do enough to prevent these tools from being used for harm…” his testimony continued.

    “That goes for fake news, foreign interference in elections, and hate speech, as well as developers and data privacy.”

    Facebook, which has 2.1 billion monthly active users worldwide, said on Sunday it plans to begin on Monday telling users whose data, may have been shared with Cambridge Analytica.

    The company’s data practices are under investigation by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.

    London-based Cambridge Analytica, which counts U.S. President Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign among its past clients, has disputed Facebook’s estimate of the number of affected users.

    Zuckerberg also said that Facebook’s major investments in security “will significantly impact our profitability going forward.” Facebook shares were up two per cent in midday trading.

    Facebook has about 15,000 people working on security and content review, rising to more than 20,000 by the end of 2018, Zuckerberg’s testimony said.

    “Protecting our community is more important than maximising our profits,” he said.

    As with other Silicon Valley companies, Facebook has been resistant to new laws governing its business, but on Friday it backed proposed legislation requiring social media sites to disclose the identities of buyers of online political campaign ads.

    Also introduced a new verification process for people buying “issue” ads, which do not endorse any candidate but have been used to exploit divisive subjects such as gun laws or police shootings.

    The steps are designed to deter online information warfare and election meddling that U.S. authorities have accused Russia of pursuing, Zuckerberg said on Friday.

    Moscow has denied the allegations.

    Zuckerberg’s testimony said the company was “too slow to spot and respond to Russian interference, and we’re working hard to get better.”

    He vowed to make improvements, adding it would take time, but said he was “committed to getting it right.”

    A Facebook official confirmed that the company had hired a team from the law firm WilmerHale and outside consultants to help prepare Zuckerberg for his testimony and how lawmakers may question him.

    Reuters/NAN

  • 2.7m EU users affected by data privacy scandal – Facebook

    Facebook says up to 2.7 million Facebook users in the European Union have been affected by the data privacy scandal, a spokesman for the European Commission said on Friday.

    “Facebook confirmed to us that the data of overall up to 2.7 million … people in the EU may have been improperly shared with Cambridge Analytica,” said Christian Wigand, a commission spokesman.

    On Wednesday, Facebook admitted that it had “improperly shared” the personal data of 87 million Facebook users, an increase of more than 30 million from previous estimates, with the British data analysis firm Cambridge Analytica.

    The firm used the information, without users’ consent, to support the campaign for Britain’s exit from the European Union, as well as the 2016 election campaign of U.S. President Donald Trump.

    The U.S. social media giant revealed the full extent of the data breach in the EU in a letter Thursday evening responding to questions by EU Justice Commissioner Vera Jourova.

    “We will follow the letter in more detail, but it is already clear that this will need further follow-up discussions with Facebook,” Wigand said.

    He noted that Jourova is set to have a phone call with Facebook’s Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg “On Monday.”

    dpa/NAN

  • German justice minister calls in Facebook over data ‘scandal’

    German Justice Minister Katarina Barley has asked to speak to Facebook executives to find out whether the social media site’s 30 million users in the country were affected by what she described as “scandal” involving personal data.

    Barley said it must be possible for users of social media sites to specify whether they are happy for their data to be used in certain ways, rather than just giving them the option to tick “yes” or not be able to use the service.

    “We know that companies respect the rules when sanctions are particularly painful,” she said on Thursday.

    “And the data protection basic regulation calls for fines of up to 4 percent of a company’s yearly global turnover.”

     Barley also said data protection had to be regulated at a European level, rather than by national governments.

    The news men reports that Facebook Inc Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg apologised on Wednesday for mistakes his company made in how it handled data belonging to 50 million of its users and promised tougher steps to restrict developers’ access to such information.

     The world’s largest social media network is facing growing government scrutiny in Europe and the U. S. about a whistleblower’s allegations that London-based political consultancy Cambridge Analytica improperly accessed user information to build profiles on American voters that were later used to help elect U.S. President Donald Trump in 2016.

    “This was a major breach of trust. I’m really sorry this happened. We have a basic responsibility to protect people’s data,” Zuckerberg said in an interview with CNN, breaking a public silence since the scandal erupted at the weekend.

    Read Also: Facebook chief apologises for data breaches

    He said the social network planned to conduct an investigation of thousands of apps that have used Facebook’s platform, restrict developer access to data, and give members a tool that lets them to disable access to their Facebook data more easily.

    His plans did not represent a big reduction of advertisers’ ability to use Facebook data, which is the company’s lifeblood.

    Zuckerberg said he was open to additional government regulation and happy to testify before the U.S. Congress if he was the right person.

    “I’m not sure we shouldn’t be regulated,” he told CNN. “I actually think the question is more what is the right regulation rather than yes or no, should it be regulated? … People should know who is buying the ads that they see on Facebook.”

    Zuckerberg said Facebook was committed to stopping interference in the U.S. midterm election in November and elections in India and Brazil.

    Facebook shares pared gains on Wednesday after Zuckerberg’s post, closing up 0.7 per cent.

    The company has lost more than 45 billion dollars of its stock market value over the past three days on investor fears that any failure by big tech firms to protect personal data could deter advertisers and users and invite tougher regulation.

    Zuckerberg told the New York Times in an interview published on Wednesday he had not seen a “meaningful number of people” deleting their accounts over the scandal.

    Facebook representatives, including Deputy Chief Privacy Officer Rob Sherman, met U.S. congressional staff for nearly two hours on Wednesday and planned to continue meetings on Capitol Hill on Thursday.

    Facebook was unable to answer many questions, two aides who attended the briefing said.

    NAN

     

  • Facebook chief apologises for data breaches

    Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has admitted that the social network “made mistakes” that led to millions of Facebook users having their data exploited by a political consultancy.

    The BBC reports that Cambridge Analytica is accused of improperly using the data on behalf of political clients.

    In a statement, Mr. Zuckerberg said a “breach of trust” had occurred.

    In a later interview with CNN the Facebook founder said he was “really sorry”, and pledged to take action against “rogue apps.”

    Mr. Zuckerberg added that he was “happy” to testify before Congress “if it’s the right thing to do.”

    In his statement posted on Facebook, he promised to make it far harder for apps to “harvest” user information.

    “We have a responsibility to protect your data, and if we can’t then we don’t deserve to serve you,” he said.

  • Facebook under pressure as U.S., EU call for probes into data practices

    British privacy regulators are seeking a warrant to search the offices of the political consultancy Cambridge Analytica, following reports that the company may have improperly gained access to data on 50 million Facebook users.

    The move came as U.S. and European lawmakers demanded an explanation of how the consulting firm, which worked on President Donald Trump’s election campaign, gained access to the data.

    In the U.S., members of Congress called on Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to testify about Facebook’s actions.

    Facebook said on Monday it had hired forensic auditors from the firm Stroz Friedberg to investigate and determine whether Cambridge Analytica still had the data.

    “Auditors from Stroz Friedberg were on site at Cambridge Analytica’s London office this evening,” the company said in a statement late Monday.

    “At the request of the UK Information Commissioner’s Office, which has announced it is pursuing a warrant to conduct its own on-site investigation, the Stroz Friedberg auditors stood down.”

    Facebook shares closed down nearly 7.0 per cent on Monday, wiping nearly $40 billion off its market value as investors worried that new legislation could damage the company’s advertising business.

    “The lid is being opened on the black box of Facebook data practices, and the picture is not pretty,” said Frank Pasquale, a University of Maryland law professor who has written about Silicon Valley’s use of data.

    Also on Monday, a source said that Facebook head of security, Alex Stamos, plans to leave the company over disagreements about the company’s policies on misinformation.

    He had been a strong advocate for an aggressive approach to alleged Russian activity on the platform aimed at manipulating elections.

    His departure was first reported by the New York Times. Facebook declined immediate comment.

    In a tweet, Stamos did not deny he was leaving but said: “Despite the rumors, I’m still fully engaged with my work at Facebook. It’s true that my role did change.”

    The criticism of Cambridge Analytica presents a new threat to Facebook’s reputation, which is already under attack over Russia’s alleged use of Facebook tools to sway U.S. voters with divisive and false news posts before and after the 2016 election.

    London-based Cambridge Analytica said it strongly denied the media claims, and that it deleted all Facebook data it obtained from a third-party application in 2014 after learning the information did not adhere to data protection rules.

    However, further allegations about the firm’s tactics were reported late Monday by British broadcaster Channel 4 which said it secretly taped interviews with senior Cambridge Analytica executives in which they boasted of their ability to sway elections in countries around the world with digital manipulation and traditional political trickery.

    Cambridge Analytica rejected the allegations, saying in a statement that the Channel 4 report “is edited and scripted to grossly misrepresent the nature of those conversations and how the company conducts its business.”

    Facebook was already facing calls on Saturday for regulation from the U.S. Congress after the reports in the New York Times and London’s Observer over the weekend.

    Republican Senator John Kennedy called on Zuckerberg to testify before Congress, and Democratic Senator Ron Widen sent a letter to Zuckerberg asking about company policies for sharing user data with third parties.

    Facebook usually sends lawyers to testify to Congress, or allows trade organizations to represent it and other technology companies in front of lawmakers.

    Facebook and other social media companies including Twitter Inc and Alphabet Inc’s YouTube have taken voluntary steps to restrict possible foreign interference and combat false news, but they have not been forced by law or regulation to make changes and legislation on the issue has stalled.

    Late on Monday, the Connecticut Attorney General said the office will initiate an inquiry into Facebook data policies.

    The Senate was expected to move forward on Monday with a bill that would chip away at the internet industry’s legal shield, a decades-old law known as Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, with a bill intended to address online sex trafficking.

    The measure has already passed the House and is expected to soon become law.

    Reuters/NAN

  • Zuckerberg sells nearly $500m Facebook stock in February

    Zuckerberg sells nearly $500m Facebook stock in February

    Facebook Inc Chief Executive Officer, Mark Zuckerberg, sold nearly 500 million dollars in the company’s shares in February to fund his philanthropic investment vehicle, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative ( CZI ), regulatory filings showed.

    The move is not a surprise, being part of Zuckerberg’s plan to expedite stock sales to fund the initiative he set up in December 2015 with his wife Priscilla Chan.

    Two security filings on Thursday showed that Zuckerberg sold 685,000 shares worth 125.4 million dollars in the last three days of February.

    This had taken his total sales in the month to about 2.7 million shares worth 482.2 million dollars.

    Zuckerberg said in September he would sell 35 million to 75 million shares of Facebook over the next 18 months.

    That would amount to up to 13 billion dollars, based on Facebook’s current share price.

    The Silicon Valley billionaire has said he will donate 99 per cent of his Facebook shares to CZI – worth about 45 billion dollars when the initiative was formed.

    He sold about 1.6 billion dollars of the company’s stock in 2016 and 2017, according to technology website Recode.

    Zuckerberg’s foundation is similar to those set up by Microsoft Corp founder Bill Gates and his wife Melinda Gates, and the Buffett Foundation, formed by billionaire Warren Buffett.

    Reuters/NAN

  • Facebook: ‘Users will see fewer posts from brands, companies’

    Facebook: ‘Users will see fewer posts from brands, companies’

    Facebook shares dropped on Friday after the company’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced a change in its news feed to direct content from families and friends to which users are directly connected to.

    In a Facebook post on Thursday, Zuckerberg said the changes are needed because the news tool has shifted away from what it was intended to do which is to help people connect.

    ‘’It’s easy to understand how we got here. Video and other public content have exploded on Facebook in the past couple of years.

    Read Also: Facebook investigates temporary outage of WhatsApp messenger

    ‘’We feel a responsibility to make sure our services aren’t just fun to use, but also good for people’s well-being. So we’ve studied this trend carefully by looking at the academic research and doing our own research with leading experts at universities,’’Zuckerberg wrote.

    The changes will mean users will see fewer posts from brands and companies. Rather, users will see stories, videos and photographs from people to which they are already connected.

     

  • NDDC to support universities in Niger Delta region – Ndoma-Egba

    NDDC to support universities in Niger Delta region – Ndoma-Egba

    The Chairman Governing Board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Sen. Victor Ndoma-Egba, has expressed the willingness of the Commission to support Universities in the region.

    Ndoma-Egba said this in a statement issued in Abuja on Monday by Mrs Clara Braide, Special Adviser Communication to the Chairman, NDDC.

    Braide quoted the NDDC Chairman when the Pro Chancellor and Chairman of the Governing Council of the Federal University of Technology, Owerri, (FUTO), Prof. John Offem led a delegation of the 11th Governing Council of the University to visit the NDDC Office in Abuja.

    The NDDC boss congratulated the Pro Chancellor and Members of his Council on their appointment into the Governing Board of FUTO, while commending the University for producing well trained graduates who are doing very well in their various professional fields.

    “NDDC is giving special attention to Universities in the Member States of the region because we believe that well educated and empowered youths are the real resource of the nation and not oil.

    “Technology is a key driver of any economy.

    Oil is a finite resource, which might either dry up someday or made irrelevant by technology.

    We must, therefore, begin to look at an economy outside oil,” he emphasised.

    Ndoma-Egba further assured the delegation of the commitment of NDDC Board and Management to change the economic fortunes of the region by undertaking youth oriented projects that would create jobs for the people of the Region.

    He intimated the delegation of the commission’s plans to ring the region with Fibre Optics which would provide internet penetration and access across the entire Niger Delta Region.

    According to him, Internet connectivity is a catalyst to development.

    “Bill Gates, Zuckerberg founder of Facebook, and Steve Jobs are very good examples of youths who never had formal education, but through technology and creativity have made a huge difference in the world.

    “Similar creative and innovative minds that could drive technology could also be found in Abia, Imo and indeed other parts of the region, ” he said.

    Ndoma-Egba expressed the willingness of the Commission to collaborate with FUTO to jump start the process of adding more value to all Universities in the region and the Academic Community.

    Earlier, Offem said that FUTO is one of the Specialised Universities established by the Federal Government in 1980 to produce skilled manpower with strong Technological base to facilitate development of the country.

    He said the University has grown to become a leading supplier of skilled manpower to the Nigerian labour market, especially in the oil and gas, transportation and telecommunications as well as information technology sectors of the economy.

    The Pro Chancellor solicited the support of NDDC in undertaking various infrastructural Projects, particularly the construction of perimeter fencing to secure the University from encroachment by their neighboring Communities, illegal entry and other activities by undesirable elements

  • Five useful tips for introverted entrepreneurs

    Five useful tips for introverted entrepreneurs

    Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Warren Buffett and many of the world’s most successful entrepreneurs either are or have admitted that they are,to a large extent, introverts. It is possible for introverts to become great entrepreneurs. Jumia Travel [1], the leading online travel agency,shares five  useful tips for introverted entrepreneurs.

    HAVE A RECHARGE TIME
    Introverts need time to themselves, time away from social interactions and activities, if not they will eventually run out of energy, lose their composure and stop being productive. Many introverts understand this aspect of their personality, and to become a successful entrepreneur it’s important they find time away from it all to be by themselves (or around those they are comfortable with) and just recharge. This can be as simple as taking a 10 to 15 minutes break to yourself during the day, or taking a long weekend to yourself in the long term.

    INTENTIONALLY BUILD RELATIONSHIPS
    Building relationships isn’t very easy for introverts. It’s easier for them to be the object of relationship building as opposed to them actually being the ones to initiate the process. Unfortunately, you cannot be a successful entrepreneur if you are unable to build good relationships. In this case, your passion for entrepreneurship will have to win and take precedence over your discomfort with building relationships. Being intentional with building relationships (that is, not being emotional about the whole thing) and making yourself reach out to those around you is an easier way to build necessary relationships.

    USE YOUR STRENGTHS WELL
    Social interactions might be the one major weakness of introverts, but they also have great strengths that are vital to entrepreneurial success. Introverts have great listening skills. In a world where most people speak before they think, introverts naturally do the opposite and listen first before they speak. It is thus easier for them to get needed information to make smart decisions and enhance everything about their business, from sales to marketing. The listening skill is a very valuable tool for successful entrepreneurs.

    LEARN TO LIVE OUTSIDE OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE
    To be a successful introverted entrepreneur, you’ll ultimately learn how to live outside of your comfort zone. This is because virtually every day you will encounter situations and scenarios that will take you out of your comfort zone. But if you’re really passionate about entrepreneurship, you’ll have to make that conscious decision daily to let passion win over comfort.

    DELEGATE OR OUTSOURCE TASKS YOU CAN’T HANDLE
    In the end, you’re an entrepreneur not a dare devil. You can’t keep living out of your comfort zone, which is why you need time to recharge in the first place. However, you have to be wise and be able to determine the tasks that are just not necessary for you to handle and outsource or delegate these tasks to an individual or group that can handle it better. Have some extroverts around that can handle certain  of your business easier than you would, while you can take on the more crucial aspects. You’re an entrepreneur, not a one-man army, and like Bill Gates admitted, a business can’t be managed and operate by an entire group of introverts, some extroverted influence is involved.

     

     

     

  • Facebook founder meets Nigeria’s Lola FIN founder

    Facebook founder meets Nigeria’s Lola FIN founder

    Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, on Tuesday received Nigeria’s Lola Omolola, founder of a secret Facebook group called Female in Nigeria popularly called Female in (FIN).
    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that FIN was founded in 2015 by Omolola, a movement of women focused on building compassion and providing support for one another, with the goal of having up to 1000 members in the group.
    However, the group had exceeded its target as it recently hit one million members.
    According to Zuckerberg’s Facebook page on Tuesday, he will be meeting with Lola and a few hundred of other top Facebook group admins in Chicago later in the month for the first ever Facebook Communities Summit.
    “Over the past few weeks, I’ve been meeting group admins across the country that are building meaningful communities on Facebook and will be at the summit.
    “This photo is with Lola, who lives in Chicago and is originally from Nigeria.
    “Two years ago, she founded a secret Facebook group called Female IN, or FIN,’’ Zuckerberg said.
    Zuckerberg said FIN is “a no-judgment space where more than a million women come to talk about everything from marriage and sex to health issues and work problems’’
    “It is helping to end the culture of silence that exists for women in some parts of the world.’’
    He said for the past decade, Facebook had been focused on making the world more open and connected.

    Members of Female in

    The facebook founder expressed the willingness of the platform to continue to connect persons, adding that there was the need to do much more by bringing people closer together and build common understanding.
    “One of the best ways to do that is by helping people build community, both in the physical world and online.
    “I have written and talked about these themes throughout this year, especially in my community letter in February and at Harvard Commencement in May.
    “The Chicago summit will be the next chapter and we’ll discuss more of what we’re building to empower community leaders to bring the world closer.
    “I’m looking forward to meeting more admins like Lola and talking about how we can help them do even more to build community.
    “I’ll share more info on the summit as we get closer, and I’ll stream the event live from my profile later this month.’’
    NAN reports that members of FIN now meet in thousands in cities all around the world. (NAN)