FTC kicks off sweeping privacy probe of nine major social media firms
Enlarge (credit: Aurich Lawson / Ars Technica)
The Federal Trade Commission is stepping up its digital privacy work and has asked just about every major social media platform you can think of to explain what personal data it collects from users and why.
The requests for information went out today to nine platforms (or their parent companies, where applicable), including Discord, Facebook, Reddit, Snapchat, TikTok, Twitch, Twitter, WhatsApp, and YouTube, according to the press release. The companies that receive the orders have 45 days to explain to the FTC:
- How social media and video streaming services collect, use, track, estimate, or derive personal and demographic information
- How they determine which ads and other content are shown to consumers
- Whether they apply algorithms or data analytics to personal information
- How they measure, promote, and research user engagement
- How their practices affect children and teens
A sample order (PDF) shows the depth and specificity of the information the FTC is requesting from each firm, including extremely granular data about monthly and daily active users, business and advertising strategies, and potential plans for acquisitions or divestments. Interestingly, each firm is also required to say how many users it has inaccurate demographic information for and how it accounts for targeted advertising, including inaccurately targeted advertising. In other words, among other things the FTC wants to know: do you give advertisers their money back if you don't actually target the groups they're trying to reach?
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