This archive report was first published on 16 July 2019.
On July 16, 2019, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) approved a Sh500 billion ($5 billion) settlement with Facebook Inc over its investigation into the social media company's handling of user data.
The FTC has been investigating allegations that Facebook inappropriately shared information belonging to 87 million users with the now-defunct British political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica.
The probe has focused on whether the data sharing violated a 2011 consent agreement between Facebook and the regulator.
Investors cheered news of the deal, pushing Facebook shares up 1.8 per cent, while several powerful Democratic lawmakers in Washington condemned the proposed penalty as inadequate.
Representative David Cicilline, a Democrat and chair of a congressional antitrust panel, called the Sh500 billion penalty 'a Christmas present five months early.'
He added, 'This fine is a fraction of Facebook's annual revenue. It won't make them think twice about their responsibility to protect user data.'
Facebook's revenue for the first quarter of this year was Sh1.51 trillion ($15.1 billion), while its net income was Sh243 billion ($2.43 billion).
The settlement would be the largest civil penalty ever paid to the agency.
The FTC and Facebook declined to comment.
The Silicon Valley firm still faces further potential antitrust probes as the FTC and Justice Department undertake a wide-ranging review of competition among the biggest US tech companies.
