Mark Zuckerberg evades answering questions at yesterday’s disappointing hearing
Mark Zuckerberg appeared before the European Parliament yesterday to answer questions regarding the misuse of Facebook data by companies who have sought to influence elections around the world. His questioning came the day we heard that anti-abortion apps, Save the 8th and LoveBoth, being used to promote their cause in the Irish referendum on the 8th Amendment are collecting data and passing it on to Conservative groups in the USA, pro-Brexit groups and the Conservative party in UK.
It is unlikely that users are aware of the manner in which their data is being collected and who it is being given to. Trackers contained inside the apps have Facebook analytics which Facebook says can produce deep demographic analysis.
Kyle Taylor, Director of The Fair Vote Project, said “Zuckerberg was not held accountable at all, he was permitted to respond to questions in one go with no follow up questioning from MEPs’. Apparently this is what it looks like to be held to account for crimes against democracy. It seems totally without merit to ask him one hundred questions if he can just pick and choose the ones he wants to answer and avoid the more incriminating questions.
This painfully slow process illustrates just how weak our democratic institutions are at protecting and preserving our democracy and how big money is running roughshod over citizens’ right to self-determination – and it is quite literally happening again as we speak in Ireland and absolutely nothing has been done about it.
Zuckerberg claims to be trying to fix the problems that have recently come to light about misuse of Facebook data but suspicious apps like Save the 8th and LoveBoth continue to use Facebook products to abuse the current system.
When will our leaders around the world stand up to these self-styled data barons and give us back our democracy?”
