FTC’s political wrangling delays Facebook settlement, newspaper says
ASSOCIATED PRESS / 2012
In this photo, the Facebook logo is displayed on an iPad in Philadelphia. Facebook may have to wait a little longer before it can resolve a U.S. government investigation into its mishandling of personal information on its social network. The Wall Street Journal is reporting that a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission is being delayed by political wrangling. The newspaper says the FTC’s chairman is trying to persuade the commission’s Democratic commissioners to support the deal, along with its Republicans. The FTC declined comment today.
SAN FRANCISCO >> Facebook may have to wait longer before resolving a U.S. government investigation into the company’s mishandling of personal information.
The Wall Street Journal is reporting that political wrangling is delaying a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission. Facebook could be fined up to $5 billion for various breaches of privacy.
The newspaper says FTC Chairman Joseph Simons has the votes he needs from fellow Republicans, but is trying to persuade at least one Democratic commissioner to back the deal as well. The newspaper says the two Democrats consider the deal too lenient.
The FTC and Facebook declined comment today. The Journal cited unidentified people familiar with the matter.
The FTC opened an investigation after revelations that data mining firm Cambridge Analytica had gathered details on Facebook users without permission.
