The Cambridge Analytica Scandal: Difference between revisions
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:The scandal involved Facebook, Global Science Research (GSR), and Cambridge Analytica (Analytica). It exposed vulnerabilities in social media platforms, the misuse of personal data for political gain, and the lack of regulatory safeguards. | :The scandal involved Facebook, Global Science Research (GSR), and Cambridge Analytica (Analytica). It exposed vulnerabilities in social media platforms, the misuse of personal data for political gain, and the lack of regulatory safeguards. | ||
{| class="wikitable" style="margin:auto" | {| class="wikitable" style="margin:auto" | ||
|+Key individuals and companies | |+Key individuals and companies involved | ||
|- | |- | ||
!Name | !Name | ||
!Role | |||
|- | |- | ||
| | |Global Science Research | ||
|Alexsandr Kogan's compnay | |||
|- | |- | ||
| | |Aleksandr Kogan | ||
|Developed the data-harvesting app and violated Facebook’s terms by sharing data with Analytica.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Meredith |first=Sam |date=10 Apr 2018 |title=Facebook-Cambridge Analytica: A timeline of the data hijacking scandal |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2018/04/10/facebook-cambridge-analytica-a-timeline-of-the-data-hijacking-scandal.html |url-status=live |access-date=25 Jun 2025 |website=CNBC}}</ref> | |||
|- | |- | ||
| | |Cambridge Analytica | ||
|Used illicitly obtained data for political micro-targeting in U.S. campaign and accused of the same in the UK campaign.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Chan |first=Rosalie |date=5 Oct 2019 |title=The Cambridge Analytica whistleblower explains how the firm used Facebook data to sway elections |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/cambridge-analytica-whistleblower-christopher-wylie-facebook-data-2019-10 |url-status=live |access-date=25 Jun 2025 |website=Business Insider}}</ref> | |||
|- | |- | ||
| | |Facebook (Meta) | ||
|Failed to protect user data and allowed third-party apps excessive access via APIs.<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Meredith |first=Sam |date=21 Mar 2018 |title=Here’s everything you need to know about the Cambridge Analytica scandal |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2018/03/21/facebook-cambridge-analytica-scandal-everything-you-need-to-know.html |url-status=live |access-date=25 Jun 2025 |website=CNBC}}</ref> | |||
|- | |- | ||
|Alexander Nix| | |Christopher Wylie | ||
|Whistleblower who exposed the misuse of data by Analytica.<ref name=":2" /> | |||
|- | |||
|Alexander Nix | |||
|CEO of CA suspended after boasting of unethical tactics in undercover footage.<ref name=":3" /> | |||
|} | |} | ||
==Data theft== | ==Data theft== | ||
===Harvesting=== | ===Harvesting=== | ||
Revision as of 06:13, 26 June 2025
The Cambridge Analytica Scandal involved the unauthorized harvesting of personal data from millions of Facebook users, which was then used for psychographic profiling and targeted political advertising.
Background
- The scandal involved Facebook, Global Science Research (GSR), and Cambridge Analytica (Analytica). It exposed vulnerabilities in social media platforms, the misuse of personal data for political gain, and the lack of regulatory safeguards.
| Name | Role |
|---|---|
| Global Science Research | Alexsandr Kogan's compnay |
| Aleksandr Kogan | Developed the data-harvesting app and violated Facebook’s terms by sharing data with Analytica.[1] |
| Cambridge Analytica | Used illicitly obtained data for political micro-targeting in U.S. campaign and accused of the same in the UK campaign.[2] |
| Facebook (Meta) | Failed to protect user data and allowed third-party apps excessive access via APIs.[3] |
| Christopher Wylie | Whistleblower who exposed the misuse of data by Analytica.[1] |
| Alexander Nix | CEO of CA suspended after boasting of unethical tactics in undercover footage.[3] |
Data theft
Harvesting
- In 2013 Aleksandr Kogan, a researcher at the University of Cambridge, developed a Facebook app called "This Is Your Digital Life" under his company, GSR.[1] The app was presented as a personality quiz and paid users to take psychological surveys. It collected their Facebook data including their friends' information due to Facebook’s permissive API policies at the time. Approximately 270,000 users directly took the quiz , accessing an estimated 87 million profiles because of Facebook’s Open Graph platform.[4][5] The collected data included likes, location, birth dates, friend networks, and some users' private messages.[6]
Transferred to Cambridge Analytica
- Kogan violated Facebook’s terms by sharing the data with Analytica, a political consulting firm co-founded by Republican donor Robert Mercer and led by CEO Alexander Nix. To predict and influence voter behavior Analytica used the data to build psychographic profiles based on the OCEAN (openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, neuroticism) model[7]
Political applications:
- Ted Cruz’s 2016 Presidential Campaign: Analytica was hired to micro-target voters with tailored ads.[7]
- Donald Trump’s 2016 Campaign: The psychographic models allegedly helped the Trump campaign identify and persuade swing voters. Although former staffer Brad Parscale had ties to Analytica, the campaign denied knowingly using improperly obtained data.[5][8]
- Brexit Referendum (2016): Analytica was linked to the pro-Brexit group, Leave EU, though investigations later found no direct evidence of significant involvement.
Whistleblower revelations
- In March 2018, former Analytica employee Christopher Wylie exposed the scandal through The Guardian and The New York Times, revealing that Facebook had known about the breach since 2015 but failed to notify affected users or enforce data deletion.[5]
Responses
- Facebook dismissed the incident as a "violation of terms" rather than a "data breach", claiming, "...Mr.Korgan misled us all."[8]
- CA claimed it was not aware that the data from GSR violated Facebook's ToS and deleted it after insistence from Facebook.[8]
Outcome
- Mark Zuckerberg testified before the U.S. Congress in April 2018, acknowledging lapses in oversight.
- Facebook faced a $5 billion FTC fine in 2019 for privacy violations.
- Cambridge Analytica filed for bankruptcy in May 2018 amid investigations.
- Regulatory Reforms:
- The EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) was strengthened in response.
- U.S. lawmakers proposed stricter social media regulations, though no comprehensive federal law was passed.
Consumer response
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Meredith, Sam (10 Apr 2018). "Facebook-Cambridge Analytica: A timeline of the data hijacking scandal". CNBC. Retrieved 25 Jun 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ Chan, Rosalie (5 Oct 2019). "The Cambridge Analytica whistleblower explains how the firm used Facebook data to sway elections". Business Insider. Retrieved 25 Jun 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ 3.0 3.1 Meredith, Sam (21 Mar 2018). "Here's everything you need to know about the Cambridge Analytica scandal". CNBC. Retrieved 25 Jun 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Facebook data privacy scandal: A cheat sheet". TechRepublic. July 30, 2020. Retrieved 25 Jun 2025.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Cadwalladr, Carole; Graham-Harrison, Emma (March 17, 2018). "Revealed: 50 million Facebook profiles harvested for Cambridge Analytica in major data breach". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 Jun 2025.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ "Cambridge Analytica". dig.watch. Retrieved 25 Jun 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ 7.0 7.1 Fernando, Jason (January 28, 2025). "Cambridge Analytica: Overview, History, and Examples". investopedia. Retrieved 25 Jun 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Overly, Steven (March 17, 2018). "Report: Trump-linked firm exploited data on 50 million Facebook users". Politico.