Facebook Shares Tumble As US Regulator Announces Privacy Probe

Shares of Facebook Incorporated fell more than 5 percent on
Monday after the United States Federal Trade Commission made public
its investigation of the social network following the disclosure
that data of 50 million users got into the hands of political
consultancy Cambridge Analytica.

The move by the US consumer protection regulator adds to
pressure from lawmakers in the United States and Europe for
Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg to explain how his company
handles user data.

The FTC rarely confirms an investigation publicly before it
files a complaint except in cases of significant public
interest.

Facebook also faces rising discontent from advertisers and
users. US auto parts retailer Pep Boys on Monday suspended all
advertising on Facebook, joining internet company Mozilla Corp
which made a similar move last week.

Opinion polls published on Sunday in the United States and
Germany cast doubt over the trust people have in Facebook as the
firm ran advertisements in British and US newspapers apologising to
users.

Fewer than half of Americans trust Facebook to obey U.S. privacy
laws, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Sunday, while a
survey published by Bild am Sonntag, Germany’s largest-selling
Sunday paper, found 60 percent of Germans fear that Facebook and
other social networks are having a negative impact on
democracy.

Shares of Facebook Incorporated fell more than 5 percent on
Monday after the United States Federal Trade Commission made public
its investigation of the social network following the disclosure
that data of 50 million users got into the hands of political
consultancy Cambridge Analytica.

The move by the US consumer protection regulator adds to
pressure from lawmakers in the United States and Europe for
Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg to explain how his company
handles user data.

The FTC rarely confirms an investigation publicly before it
files a complaint except in cases of significant public
interest.

Facebook also faces rising discontent from advertisers and
users. US auto parts retailer Pep Boys on Monday suspended all
advertising on Facebook, joining internet company Mozilla Corp
which made a similar move last week.

Opinion polls published on Sunday in the United States and
Germany cast doubt over the trust people have in Facebook as the
firm ran advertisements in British and US newspapers apologising to
users.

Fewer than half of Americans trust Facebook to obey U.S. privacy
laws, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released on Sunday, while a
survey published by Bild am Sonntag, Germany’s largest-selling
Sunday paper, found 60 percent of Germans fear that Facebook and
other social networks are having a negative impact on
democracy.