US states to launch antitrust and privacy inquiries into Facebook and Google

New York state attorney general said bipartisan coalition investigating if Facebook stifled competition and put users at risk

Dozens of US states are set to launch antitrust and privacy investigations into Facebook and Google as scrutiny of the big tech firms increases in the US.

The investigation into Alphabet's Google unit will examine the search giant's effect on the digital advertising market and its impact on consumers. In a separate but overlapping investigation the states' leading law enforcers will investigate Facebook's privacy record and its advertising model.