Newly-released documents suggest that Facebook knew about the Cambridge Analytica scandal much earlier than we originally thought.
Documents suggest that Facebook knew the company was gathering user profile data three months before the press revealed that the firm was using profile data to target voters during the 2016 elections, CNBC reports.
Internal emails released by Facebook suggest that the social network had concerns about Cambridge Analytica as well as several other companies that were using data in ways that potentially violate Facebook policies as early as September 2015. Those documents suggested that Facebook employees planned to reach out to the companies in question to determine how they were using Facebook’s data. One email sent on September 30, 2015 speculatd that “these apps’ data-scraping activity is likely non-compliant” with Facebook’s policies.
Facebook made a joint statement Friday about the issue along with District of Columbia Attorney General. It also released a separate statement explaining the documents, which it says hold the potential for confusion — confusion it wanted to preemptively clear up.
“There is no substantively new information in this document and the issues have been previously reported,” a blog post posted by Paul Grewal, Vice President and Deputy General Counsel for Facebook reads.”As we have said many times, including last week to a British parliamentary committee, these are two distinct issues. One involved unconfirmed reports of scraping — accessing or collecting public data from our products using automated means — and the other involved policy violations by Aleksandr Kogan, an app developer who sold user data to Cambridge Analytica. This document proves the issues are separate; conflating them has the potential to mislead people.”
Aleksandr Kogan is the app developer that sold data he collected about Facebook users to Cambridge Analytica. Facebook says it was not aware he made that sale until December 2015.
In May of 2018 Cambridge Analytica officially ceased operations. At the time it said that it had been “the subject of numerous unfounded accusations and, despite the company’s efforts to correct the record, has been vilified for activities that are not only legal, but also widely accepted as a standard component of online advertising in both the political and commercial arenas.”
Due to the scandal, the company said it had lost almost all of its customers and suppliers.
Instagram is testing a new format for long-form videos called Features. It allows select creators to upload horizontal videos running up to 90 minutes long. Instagram has already tested the new format with creators in Brazil, and now, it's expanding to tens of thousands of creators across the US.
How will Instagram's new Features format work?
Instagram is making its way to yet another screen, and this time, Apple TV is getting a taste of the Reels rabbit hole. The company has launched a dedicated Instagram app for Apple TV, bringing Reels, longer videos, and live shows to the big screen. So, if watching one quick clip on a phone somehow turns into an hour of scrolling, there's now a much larger screen for that.
Instagram brings Reels and more to Apple TV
I have lost count of how many times I have gone to bed thinking I will finally sleep on time, only to somehow end up scrolling Instagram or X again. A few minutes turn into an hour, then another, and before I notice, it is 2 or 3 a.m. The next morning, I am usually annoyed with myself because I could have just slept and felt considerably better for the day ahead.
It is also a surprisingly hard habit to beat. Knowing you should put the phone down does not always help once it is already in your hand. Brick Night is a new gadget built around that exact problem. Instead of relying on you to remember to turn on an app blocker, it automatically restricts selected apps and websites when your phone enters your chosen sleep space during the hours you set.