Click to Skip Ad
Closing in...

Facebook agrees to regular probes as part of FTC settlement

Updated Dec 19th, 2018 8:32PM EST
BGR

If you buy through a BGR link, we may earn an affiliate commission, helping support our expert product labs.

Facebook (FB) won’t be paying a massive $22.5 million fine like Google (GOOG) did as part of its settlement with the Federal Trade Commission, but it will have to submit to regular third-party audits to ensure it’s not inappropriately handling its users’ data. The Wall Street Journal reports that Facebook will now need to gain express permission from users before sharing their data with third parties and to “maintain a privacy program to protect consumers’ information.” Facebook agreed last November to settle FTC accusations that it was being deceptive in its data collection practices when CEO Mark Zuckerberg acknowledged the company’s mistakes and pledged to make Facebook “the leader in transparency and control around privacy.”

Read

Brad Reed
Brad Reed Staff Writer

Brad Reed has written about technology for over eight years at BGR.com and Network World. Prior to that, he wrote freelance stories for political publications such as AlterNet and the American Prospect. He has a Master's Degree in Business and Economics Journalism from Boston University.