Frances Haugen, the “mole” who exposed Facebook’s secrets, took her accusation to Congress. In a long-awaited hearing at the Senate Commerce sub-commission, the former executive of the group, who was hired to control election misinformation, said the company consistently prefers profit over user security and rights. , inspired by a culture that hides crucial information and data about its practices from regulators. The hearing focused primarily on the risks to young people and children.
A fortress of secrets
Facebook “hides behind walls that prevent researchers and regulators from understanding the true dynamics of the system. We simply have to believe what Facebook says and they have repeatedly shown that they do not deserve our blind trust, ”said Haugen. Again: the company will continue to place “its astronomical profits first of the people” in the absence of a “necessary congressional intervention”.
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Attacks by parliamentarians
The accusations resounded among the senators of both parties. Democratic leader Richard Blumenthal has demanded that the SEC and the FTC launch investigations based on internal documents and information offered by Haugen. He indicated that he intends to ask founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg to testify, after he remained silent in the face of the dispute by entrusting the company’s defense to spokespersons and other executives. A 38-second video of his that on Sunday, already in the midst of controversy, portrayed him on a sailing boat caused a sensation. Republican senator Marcia Blackburn has in turn intimated that Fb “knows he is guilty”.
Tobacco Moment
Bluementhal spoke explicitly of a “Tobacco Moment” for Facebook, a parallel with the investigations against the giants of cigarettes for having deceived the country on the toxic and carcinogenic effects of smoking and which led to profound changes in the sector. “It’s time for reckoning,” he said. Regulating Facebook The spotlight, however, remained primarily on Haugen. Facebook, he insisted, “has repeatedly deceived the public” when it comes to the safety of the very young in particular, the accuracy of artificial intelligence systems and the dissemination of extreme and violent content. The former executive also admitted how difficult it is today to regulate Facebook due to its secrecy: “The inability to look at Facebook’s actual systems and confirm that they work as directed is equivalent to a Department of Transportation tasked with regulating cars only. watching them pass in the street ”.
The documentation
The documentation revealed by the “mole” and shared with Congress shows how the company’s own research, kept secret, showed the serious damage caused in particular to the very young, including depression and suicidal tendencies among girls. In particular, on the dock is Instagram, which Haugen has revealed on the basis of research to be more dangerous than rival apps, such as TikTok, because it is focused on the comparison of styles of life and physical image.