Social networking platform Facebook Saturday said it will encourage engagement between people and political leaders on its platform for 'free and fair election' and deploy task force to check hate speeches during polls.

"We want our platform to support free and fair election and positive civic engagement. We welcome people to engage with their political leaders but we don't want people to abuse that," Facebook Vice President for Public&nbsp;Policy EMEA Richard Allan told reporters.

The company has faced criticism for misuse of its platform for manipulating views during elections, spreading hate speech etc.

Facebook has come up with a policy around hate speech under which it removes content that intends to spread hate speech and violence etc. 
Allan said that the abuse differs from country to country but principle is same, and Facebook is accordingly fine-tuning its policy to address the issue.

"When we see elections coming up, obviously India is top of mind, biggest democracy in the world, so we have a task force working on that -security specialist, content specialist. We trying to understand what is possible form of abuse in India versus UK versus any other country," he said.

Assembly elections are due in five states --Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Mizoram.

Chhattisgarh will go to the polls in two phases on November 12 and 20, the Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram Assembly elections will be held on November 28. Assembly elections in Rajasthan and Telangana will be held on December 7.

Facebook blocks content using automation as well as through experts after scrutinising it. The social media major has developed its guidelines based on feedback from local community experts.

"We have a general policy that applies all across the world. As we have looked issues in different country, one of the things that came out was that there is a view that hate speech is directed against people in India, in particular, and Indians outside India also. They may direct hate speech against each other on the basis of ...Caste," Allan said.

He said that one should not carry out hate speech attack based on gender, ethnicity, national origin, disability, religion etc.

Allan said that attacking a concept or saying someone that he doesn't like a religion is not a hate speech. However, one can not say that he hates followers of that religion or concept.

"Trust is very clear distinction between not liking a concept, not liking an idea. Some people find that controversial. They feel attacking religion is same as attacking the same as followers," Allan said.

He said that the company has policy against excessively violent content and hate speech.

"You can show images to raise awareness about violence, You can't show the image to encourage more violence. Video would not be allowed to be shown if it is hate crime, somebody is killing someone because of their religion and there is any sense that person is trying to encourage more people to do the same. That will be a very very serious breach of the policy," Allan said.

Facebook executive claimed that the company has developed good capacity to remove terrorist content, child abuse images and other images that cannot be legally shared through automation.

Facebook has plans to have around 20,000 people working across different aspect of building the automation tools, security and content review to check hate speech.

"When we got an election coming up, we will pull together specialists to work with political parties to understand... We will pull together security specialists. We will pull together people from our community operations team to check the standards are working well," Allan said.

Facebook is working on features to enhance transparency on political advertisements on its platform during Indian elections by March. Allan said that phase one of the plan has been already implemented in India.

"What the task force is trying to do is to make sure we don't miss things (abusive content) because we have seen in the past that we have missed things. In the run-up to US elections, there were things happening on the service issue, we didn't respond. It is really about making sure, in Indian context in particular, we are not missing things," Allan said.&nbsp;

Social networking platform Facebook Saturday said it will encourage engagement between people and political leaders on its platform for 'free and fair election' and deploy task force to check hate speeches during polls.

Social networking platform Facebook Saturday said it will encourage engagement between people and political leaders on its platform for 'free and fair election' and deploy task force to check hate speeches during polls. "We want our platform to support free and fair election and positive civic engagement. We welcome people to engage with their political leaders but we don't want people to abuse that," Facebook Vice President for Public Policy EMEA Richard Allan told reporters. The company has faced criticism for misuse of its platform for manipulating views during elections, spreading hate speech etc. Facebook has come up with a policy around hate speech under which it removes content that intends to spread hate speech and violence etc. Allan said that the abuse differs from country to country but principle is same, and Facebook is accordingly fine-tuning its policy to address the issue. "When we see elections coming up, obviously India is top of mind, biggest democracy in the world, so we have a task force working on that -security specialist, content specialist. We trying to understand what is possible form of abuse in India versus UK versus any other country," he said. Assembly elections are due in five states --Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Mizoram. Chhattisgarh will go to the polls in two phases on November 12 and 20, the Madhya Pradesh and Mizoram Assembly elections will be held on November 28. Assembly elections in Rajasthan and Telangana will be held on December 7. Facebook blocks content using automation as well as through experts after scrutinising it. The social media major has developed its guidelines based on feedback from local community experts. "We have a general policy that applies all across the world. As we have looked issues in different country, one of the things that came out was that there is a view that hate speech is directed against people in India, in particular, and Indians outside India also. They may direct hate speech against each other on the basis of ...Caste," Allan said. He said that one should not carry out hate speech attack based on gender, ethnicity, national origin, disability, religion etc. Allan said that attacking a concept or saying someone that he doesn't like a religion is not a hate speech. However, one can not say that he hates followers of that religion or concept. "Trust is very clear distinction between not liking a concept, not liking an idea. Some people find that controversial. They feel attacking religion is same as attacking the same as followers," Allan said. He said that the company has policy against excessively violent content and hate speech. "You can show images to raise awareness about violence, You can't show the image to encourage more violence. Video would not be allowed to be shown if it is hate crime, somebody is killing someone because of their religion and there is any sense that person is trying to encourage more people to do the same. That will be a very very serious breach of the policy," Allan said. Facebook executive claimed that the company has developed good capacity to remove terrorist content, child abuse images and other images that cannot be legally shared through automation. Facebook has plans to have around 20,000 people working across different aspect of building the automation tools, security and content review to check hate speech. "When we got an election coming up, we will pull together specialists to work with political parties to understand... We will pull together security specialists. We will pull together people from our community operations team to check the standards are working well," Allan said. Facebook is working on features to enhance transparency on political advertisements on its platform during Indian elections by March. Allan said that phase one of the plan has been already implemented in India. "What the task force is trying to do is to make sure we don't miss things (abusive content) because we have seen in the past that we have missed things. In the run-up to US elections, there were things happening on the service issue, we didn't respond. It is really about making sure, in Indian context in particular, we are not missing things," Allan said.

Facebook to deploy task force in upcoming Indian elections to check hate speech

The Dow hit a record closing high on Tuesday, but another drop in Facebook shares weighed on both the S&amp;P 500 and Nasdaq, driving both to finish in the red.

Dividend-paying sectors were the best performers of the major S&amp;P sectors, with utilities up 1.3 per cent and consumer staples up 0.6 per cent. Facebook, Netflix and Amazon, part of the so-called FANG group of stocks, kept the Nasdaq in check.

The Dow was boosted by names such as Boeing and Caterpillar as investors remained upbeat on trade-sensitive companies following the deal negotiated between the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Facebook fell 1.91 per cent, in a third straight session of declines totalling 5.6 per cent. The social media company, which on Friday disclosed its worst security breach ever, faces continuing calls for legislation to force technology firms to take responsibilities for online security seriously.

"These are all good companies that have incredibly high valuations so they are susceptible to the flu," said Stephen Massocca, senior vice president at Wedbush Securities in San Francisco. "It is easy to create fear in these names, given the valuations and this Facebook story, that is bleeding over to these other names."

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 122.73 points, or 0.46 per cent, to 26,773.94, the S&amp;P 500 lost 1.16 points, or 0.04 per cent, to 2,923.43 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 37.76 points, or 0.47 per cent, to 7,999.55.

The NYSE FANG+TM index, an equal-weighted index of five core FANG stocks, was down 4.2 per cent for September.

The smallcap Russell 2000 index was off 1.01 per cent. Smaller names, which had been viewed as being more insulated to trade pressures, are losing their lustre following Sunday's late-night North American trade agreement.

The index is now down nearly 5 per cent from its August 31 high.

Financials&nbsp;were little changed, shaking off earlier losses stemming from a drop in Italian banks after a senior lawmaker in one of Italy's ruling parties said most of the country's economic problems would be resolved if it readopted a national currency.

"That is really a blip, it definitely doesn’t bleed through to the US&nbsp;financial infrastructure," said Peter Kenny, founder of Kenny’s Commentary LLC and Strategic Board Solutions LLC in New York.

PepsiCo lost 1.80 per cent as disappointing margins due to higher commodity and transport costs overshadowed a quarterly profit that beat estimates.

Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by a 1.54-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 2.16-to-1 ratio favoured decliners.

The S&amp;P 500 posted 20 new 52-week highs and 11 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 35 new highs and 124 new lows.

Volume on US&nbsp;exchanges was 7.19 billion shares, compared to the 6.93 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days.

The Dow hit a record closing high on Tuesday, but another drop in Facebook shares weighed on both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq, driving both to finish in the red. Dividend-paying sectors were the best performers of the major S&P sectors, with utilities up 1.

The Dow hit a record closing high on Tuesday, but another drop in Facebook shares weighed on both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq, driving both to finish in the red. Dividend-paying sectors were the best performers of the major S&P sectors, with utilities up 1.3 per cent and consumer staples up 0.6 per cent. Facebook, Netflix and Amazon, part of the so-called FANG group of stocks, kept the Nasdaq in check. The Dow was boosted by names such as Boeing and Caterpillar as investors remained upbeat on trade-sensitive companies following the deal negotiated between the United States, Canada and Mexico. Facebook fell 1.91 per cent, in a third straight session of declines totalling 5.6 per cent. The social media company, which on Friday disclosed its worst security breach ever, faces continuing calls for legislation to force technology firms to take responsibilities for online security seriously. "These are all good companies that have incredibly high valuations so they are susceptible to the flu," said Stephen Massocca, senior vice president at Wedbush Securities in San Francisco. "It is easy to create fear in these names, given the valuations and this Facebook story, that is bleeding over to these other names." The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 122.73 points, or 0.46 per cent, to 26,773.94, the S&P 500 lost 1.16 points, or 0.04 per cent, to 2,923.43 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 37.76 points, or 0.47 per cent, to 7,999.55. The NYSE FANG+TM index, an equal-weighted index of five core FANG stocks, was down 4.2 per cent for September. The smallcap Russell 2000 index was off 1.01 per cent. Smaller names, which had been viewed as being more insulated to trade pressures, are losing their lustre following Sunday's late-night North American trade agreement. The index is now down nearly 5 per cent from its August 31 high. Financials were little changed, shaking off earlier losses stemming from a drop in Italian banks after a senior lawmaker in one of Italy's ruling parties said most of the country's economic problems would be resolved if it readopted a national currency. "That is really a blip, it definitely doesn’t bleed through to the US financial infrastructure," said Peter Kenny, founder of Kenny’s Commentary LLC and Strategic Board Solutions LLC in New York. PepsiCo lost 1.80 per cent as disappointing margins due to higher commodity and transport costs overshadowed a quarterly profit that beat estimates. Declining issues outnumbered advancing ones on the NYSE by a 1.54-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 2.16-to-1 ratio favoured decliners. The S&P 500 posted 20 new 52-week highs and 11 new lows; the Nasdaq Composite recorded 35 new highs and 124 new lows. Volume on US exchanges was 7.19 billion shares, compared to the 6.93 billion average for the full session over the last 20 trading days.

US Dow closes at record high

Facebook-owned photo-sharing social network Instagram briefly stopped working on Tuesday as users were not able to see pictures or profiles worldwide.

Its app and website both were inaccessible for about half an hour and&nbsp;the app displayed an error message saying "couldn't refresh feed", while its website did not load for users.

Naturally, as the Instagram went down hashtag "Instagramdown"&nbsp;started trending immediately with people flooding social media feeds with the memes and hilarious jokes.

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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Me while Instagram Stopped working due to Server Issue : <a href="https://t.co/cw6e1gUhyV">pic.twitter.com/cw6e1gUhyV</a>
— bas.kar.pagle (@bas_kar_pagle) <a href="https://twitter.com/bas_kar_pagle/status/1047399039514304513?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 3, 2018</a></blockquote>
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As soon as I found out instagram was down! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/instagramdown?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#instagramdown</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TwitterTakeOver?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TwitterTakeOver</a> <a href="https://t.co/ladMIo1CTk">pic.twitter.com/ladMIo1CTk</a>
— x (@KimkCardi) <a href="https://twitter.com/KimkCardi/status/1047399023039143936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 3, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Instagram down so here's a photo of my breakfast today - Masala Dosa Tosai <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/malaysia?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#malaysia</a> <a href="https://t.co/1uqVtQQr8m">pic.twitter.com/1uqVtQQr8m</a>
— Rachel ♔ (@sweetchiqchel) <a href="https://twitter.com/sweetchiqchel/status/1047398990617006081?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 3, 2018</a></blockquote>
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me coming to twitter to see if anyone elses instagram is down <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/instagramdown?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#instagramdown</a> <a href="https://t.co/09iDcDxtOx">pic.twitter.com/09iDcDxtOx</a>
— andrew (@pginolii) <a href="https://twitter.com/pginolii/status/1047398775617179648?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 3, 2018</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;
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Okay... Mission aboard. I repeat mission aboard. Everyone who was on their way to the Facebook and Instagram headquarters to take down ZUCC for <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/instagramdown?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#instagramdown</a>... You can go home. App is back. put the guns down and go get some pizza. We did good guys. We got them <a href="https://t.co/8DJJKeLar2">pic.twitter.com/8DJJKeLar2</a>
— 𝓡𝓸𝓷𝓷𝓲𝓮 🐕 (@lovelyjeromemp4) <a href="https://twitter.com/lovelyjeromemp4/status/1047399858028666880?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 3, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Live footage from Instagram headquarters <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Instagramdown?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Instagramdown</a> <a href="https://t.co/BxCBXgIc7V">pic.twitter.com/BxCBXgIc7V</a>
— Era (@EraCairns) <a href="https://twitter.com/EraCairns/status/1047398824019255296?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 3, 2018</a></blockquote>
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So far no official statement has been released on the matter by Facebook or Instagram.

DowDetector's live outage map showed that parts of North America, Europe, Australia, India, Singapore and other countries were facing issues with the service.

The global outage comes after Instagram announced on Monday that long-term insider Adam Mosseri will take over as the new head of the photo-sharing app, a week after its co-founders resigned.

The app has more than one billion active monthly users and has grown by adding features such as messaging and short videos.

(With inputs from news agencies)

Facebook-owned photo-sharing social network Instagram briefly stopped working on Tuesday as users were not able to see pictures or profiles worldwide. Its app and website both were inaccessible for about half an hour and the app displayed an error message saying "couldn't refresh feed", while its website did not load for users.

Facebook-owned photo-sharing social network Instagram briefly stopped working on Tuesday as users were not able to see pictures or profiles worldwide. Its app and website both were inaccessible for about half an hour and the app displayed an error message saying "couldn't refresh feed", while its website did not load for users. Naturally, as the Instagram went down hashtag "Instagramdown" started trending immediately with people flooding social media feeds with the memes and hilarious jokes. Me while Instagram Stopped working due to Server Issue : pic.twitter.com/cw6e1gUhyV — bas.kar.pagle (@bas_kar_pagle) October 3, 2018 × As soon as I found out instagram was down! #instagramdown #TwitterTakeOver pic.twitter.com/ladMIo1CTk — x (@KimkCardi) October 3, 2018 × Instagram down so here's a photo of my breakfast today - Masala Dosa Tosai #malaysia pic.twitter.com/1uqVtQQr8m — Rachel ♔ (@sweetchiqchel) October 3, 2018 × me coming to twitter to see if anyone elses instagram is down #instagramdown pic.twitter.com/09iDcDxtOx — andrew (@pginolii) October 3, 2018 × Okay... Mission aboard. I repeat mission aboard. Everyone who was on their way to the Facebook and Instagram headquarters to take down ZUCC for #instagramdown... You can go home. App is back. put the guns down and go get some pizza. We did good guys. We got them pic.twitter.com/8DJJKeLar2 — 𝓡𝓸𝓷𝓷𝓲𝓮 🐕 (@lovelyjeromemp4) October 3, 2018 × Live footage from Instagram headquarters #Instagramdown pic.twitter.com/BxCBXgIc7V — Era (@EraCairns) October 3, 2018 × So far no official statement has been released on the matter by Facebook or Instagram. DowDetector's live outage map showed that parts of North America, Europe, Australia, India, Singapore and other countries were facing issues with the service. The global outage comes after Instagram announced on Monday that long-term insider Adam Mosseri will take over as the new head of the photo-sharing app, a week after its co-founders resigned. The app has more than one billion active monthly users and has grown by adding features such as messaging and short videos. (With inputs from news agencies)

Instagram down, briefly, around the world

In the latest blow, Facebook is now expected to be fined a whopping US $1.6 billion by the European Union (EU) privacy watchdog due to the latest data breach which exposed the private information of at least 50 million users, reports said.&nbsp;

The latest data breach is said to have violated the EU's new privacy law called the General Data Protection Regulation, which came into effect in May.&nbsp;The new law by the EU aims to safeguard users data for people within the European Union.&nbsp;

The breach was discovered on Friday and Ireland's Data Protection Commission (DCI), Facebook's lead regulator in Europe, has asked the social network to reveal more information about the hack including information on EU users that were impacted.&nbsp;

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.<a href="https://twitter.com/DPCIreland?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DPCIreland</a> is awaiting from Facebook further urgent details of the security breach impacting some 50m users, including details of EU users which have been affected, so that we can properly assess the nature of the breach and risk to users. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/dataprotection?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#dataprotection</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GDPR?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#GDPR</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/eudatap?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#eudatap</a> <a href="https://t.co/3oM3BSaSBS">https://t.co/3oM3BSaSBS</a>
— Data Protection Commission Ireland (@DPCIreland) <a href="https://twitter.com/DPCIreland/status/1046417378236608512?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 30, 2018</a></blockquote>
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In the biggest-ever security breach after Cambridge Analytica scandal, Facebook on Friday admitted hackers broke into nearly 50 million users' accounts by stealing their "access tokens" or digital keys.

This allowed them to steal Facebook access tokens which they could then use to take over people's accounts.

The hackers also gained access to personal information from third-party apps and services, like Tinder, Spotify, Airbnb, and Instagram, which allow users to sign up using their Facebook login.

According to Facebook, users’ passwords were not revealed in the data breach, though impacted accounts did have to re-log into the social network on Friday. &nbsp;

Senator Mark R. Warner has also called for a full probe into the incident.

&nbsp;

In the latest blow, Facebook is now expected to be fined a whopping US $1.6 billion by the European Union (EU) privacy watchdog due to the latest data breach which exposed the private information of at least 50 million users, reports said.

In the latest blow, Facebook is now expected to be fined a whopping US $1.6 billion by the European Union (EU) privacy watchdog due to the latest data breach which exposed the private information of at least 50 million users, reports said. The latest data breach is said to have violated the EU's new privacy law called the General Data Protection Regulation, which came into effect in May. The new law by the EU aims to safeguard users data for people within the European Union. The breach was discovered on Friday and Ireland's Data Protection Commission (DCI), Facebook's lead regulator in Europe, has asked the social network to reveal more information about the hack including information on EU users that were impacted. .@DPCIreland is awaiting from Facebook further urgent details of the security breach impacting some 50m users, including details of EU users which have been affected, so that we can properly assess the nature of the breach and risk to users. #dataprotection #GDPR #eudatap https://t.co/3oM3BSaSBS — Data Protection Commission Ireland (@DPCIreland) September 30, 2018 × In the biggest-ever security breach after Cambridge Analytica scandal, Facebook on Friday admitted hackers broke into nearly 50 million users' accounts by stealing their "access tokens" or digital keys. This allowed them to steal Facebook access tokens which they could then use to take over people's accounts. The hackers also gained access to personal information from third-party apps and services, like Tinder, Spotify, Airbnb, and Instagram, which allow users to sign up using their Facebook login. According to Facebook, users’ passwords were not revealed in the data breach, though impacted accounts did have to re-log into the social network on Friday. Senator Mark R. Warner has also called for a full probe into the incident.

Facebook to be fined $1.6 billion over latest EU data breach 

Internet major Google and social media giants Twitter and Facebook have assured the Election Commission that they will not allow their platforms to be used for anything which effects the purity of polls during campaign period, Chief Election Commissioner O P Rawat has said.

He said it was tested during the Karnataka elections.&nbsp;

"Small pilot was there. That was the beginning. Now we will have a bigger pilot before Lok Sabha elections in these four states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram," the CEC told PTI.

Assembly polls are due in the four state later this year.

Rawat said a committee under Senior Deputy Election Commissioner Umesh Sinha had called regional and local heads of Google, Facebook and Twitter and had asked them as to what they can do for ensuring purity of Indian elections such as avoiding adverse impact of fake news and targeted communication to voters.

"They have all committed that during campaign period, they will not allow anything which is adversely effecting level playing field be allowed on their platforms... During the last 48 hours before the close of poll, they have committed that nothing of elections will be allowed on their platforms," he said.

The last 48 hours before the elections come to a close is called 'silence period' so that voter can calmly decide on as to whom to vote.

The companies have also assured the poll watchdog that political advertisements will be flagged, including the amount spent, so that expenditure can also be accounted for during campaign period, the Chief Election Commissioner said.

Google will establish a system that will allow it to share with the EC details about the expenditure incurred on its platforms.

The panel under Sinha was set up to explore possible changes in section 126 of Representation of the People Act, 1951 in view of the expansion and diversity of media platforms.&nbsp;

The section "prohibits displaying any election matter by means, inter alia, of television or similar apparatus, during the period of 48 hours before the hour fixed for conclusion of poll in a constituency".

Internet major Google and social media giants Twitter and Facebook have assured the Election Commission that they will not allow their platforms to be used for anything which effects the purity of polls during campaign period, Chief Election Commissioner O P Rawat has said.

Internet major Google and social media giants Twitter and Facebook have assured the Election Commission that they will not allow their platforms to be used for anything which effects the purity of polls during campaign period, Chief Election Commissioner O P Rawat has said. He said it was tested during the Karnataka elections. "Small pilot was there. That was the beginning. Now we will have a bigger pilot before Lok Sabha elections in these four states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram," the CEC told PTI. Assembly polls are due in the four state later this year. Rawat said a committee under Senior Deputy Election Commissioner Umesh Sinha had called regional and local heads of Google, Facebook and Twitter and had asked them as to what they can do for ensuring purity of Indian elections such as avoiding adverse impact of fake news and targeted communication to voters. "They have all committed that during campaign period, they will not allow anything which is adversely effecting level playing field be allowed on their platforms... During the last 48 hours before the close of poll, they have committed that nothing of elections will be allowed on their platforms," he said. The last 48 hours before the elections come to a close is called 'silence period' so that voter can calmly decide on as to whom to vote. The companies have also assured the poll watchdog that political advertisements will be flagged, including the amount spent, so that expenditure can also be accounted for during campaign period, the Chief Election Commissioner said. Google will establish a system that will allow it to share with the EC details about the expenditure incurred on its platforms. The panel under Sinha was set up to explore possible changes in section 126 of Representation of the People Act, 1951 in view of the expansion and diversity of media platforms. The section "prohibits displaying any election matter by means, inter alia, of television or similar apparatus, during the period of 48 hours before the hour fixed for conclusion of poll in a constituency".

Facebook, Twitter to help EC check fake news, targeted communication

Facebook has discovered a security issue affecting about 50 million user accounts, the company said on Friday.

Facebook said attackers stole Facebook access tokens through its "view as" feature, which they could then use to take over people's accounts. "View as" is a feature that allows users to see what their own profile looks like to someone else.

"Since we’ve only just started our investigation, we have yet to determine whether these accounts were misused or any information accessed," the company said in a blog post.

Facebook shares fell 3 per cent to $163.78 in afternoon trading.

Facebook is grappling with the worst crisis in its history, vilified for not more zealously guarding the information that users share.

The Silicon Valley-based internet colossus faced intense global scrutiny over the mass harvesting of personal data by Cambridge Analytica, a British political consultancy that worked for Donald Trump's 2016 election campaign.

The company has admitted up to 87 million users may have had their data hijacked in the scandal.

On Thursday, the social media giant who is already under scrutiny for the data breach scandal <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-admits-phone-numbers-may-be-used-target-ads-168195">admitted&nbsp;that it uses the phone numbers provided by users for two-factor authentication&nbsp;to target ads</a>.

Facebook's acknowledgement came after a study by two US universities, first reported by news website Gizmodo, found that phone numbers given to Facebook for two-factor authentication were also used to target advertising.

"We use the information people provide to offer a better, more personalised experience on Facebook, including ads," a Facebook spokesperson has been quoted as saying by news agency AFP.

"We are clear about how we use the information we collect, including the contact information that people upload or add to their own accounts. you can manage and delete contact information you've uploaded at any time."

Two-factor authentication is intended to enhance security by requiring a second step, such as entering codes sent via text messages, as well as passwords to get into accounts.

&nbsp;

Facebook has discovered a security issue affecting about 50 million user accounts, the company said on Friday. Facebook said attackers stole Facebook access tokens through its "view as" feature, which they could then use to take over people's accounts.

Facebook has discovered a security issue affecting about 50 million user accounts, the company said on Friday. Facebook said attackers stole Facebook access tokens through its "view as" feature, which they could then use to take over people's accounts. "View as" is a feature that allows users to see what their own profile looks like to someone else. "Since we’ve only just started our investigation, we have yet to determine whether these accounts were misused or any information accessed," the company said in a blog post. Facebook shares fell 3 per cent to $163.78 in afternoon trading. Facebook is grappling with the worst crisis in its history, vilified for not more zealously guarding the information that users share. The Silicon Valley-based internet colossus faced intense global scrutiny over the mass harvesting of personal data by Cambridge Analytica, a British political consultancy that worked for Donald Trump's 2016 election campaign. The company has admitted up to 87 million users may have had their data hijacked in the scandal. On Thursday, the social media giant who is already under scrutiny for the data breach scandal admitted that it uses the phone numbers provided by users for two-factor authentication to target ads. Facebook's acknowledgement came after a study by two US universities, first reported by news website Gizmodo, found that phone numbers given to Facebook for two-factor authentication were also used to target advertising. "We use the information people provide to offer a better, more personalised experience on Facebook, including ads," a Facebook spokesperson has been quoted as saying by news agency AFP. "We are clear about how we use the information we collect, including the contact information that people upload or add to their own accounts. you can manage and delete contact information you've uploaded at any time." Two-factor authentication is intended to enhance security by requiring a second step, such as entering codes sent via text messages, as well as passwords to get into accounts.

Facebook reveals security incident affecting 50 million users

Social media giant Facebook, who is already under scrutiny for data breach scandal, admitted on Thursday that it uses the phone numbers provided by users for two-factor authentication&nbsp;to target ads.

Facebook's acknowledgement came after a study by two US universities, first reported by news website Gizmodo, found that phone numbers given to Facebook for two-factor authentication were also used to target advertising.

"We use the information people provide to offer a better, more personalised experience on Facebook, including ads," a Facebook spokesperson has been quoted as saying by news agency AFP.

"We are clear about how we use the information we collect, including the contact information that people upload or add to their own accounts. you can manage and delete contact information you've uploaded at any time."

Two-factor authentication is intended to enhance security by requiring a second step, such as entering codes sent via text messages, as well as passwords to get into accounts.

According to the study, phone numbers added to profiles, for security purposes, or for messaging were potential fodder for advertisers.

Contact lists uploaded to Facebook platforms is also mined for personal information, meaning that people could unintentionally help advertisers target their friends.

"Most worrisome, we found that phone numbers uploaded as part of syncing contacts -- that were never owned by a user and never listed on their account - were in fact used to enable PII-based advertising," &nbsp;researchers said in the study.

Facebook is grappling with the worst crisis in its history, vilified for not more zealously guarding the information that users share.

The Silicon Valley-based internet colossus faced intense global scrutiny over the mass harvesting of personal data by Cambridge Analytica, a British political consultancy that worked for Donald Trump's 2016 election campaign.

The company has admitted up to 87 million users may have had their data hijacked in the scandal.

(With inputs from news agencies)

Social media giant Facebook, who is already under scrutiny for data breach scandal, admitted on Thursday that it uses the phone numbers provided by users for two-factor authentication to target ads.

Social media giant Facebook, who is already under scrutiny for data breach scandal, admitted on Thursday that it uses the phone numbers provided by users for two-factor authentication to target ads. Facebook's acknowledgement came after a study by two US universities, first reported by news website Gizmodo, found that phone numbers given to Facebook for two-factor authentication were also used to target advertising. "We use the information people provide to offer a better, more personalised experience on Facebook, including ads," a Facebook spokesperson has been quoted as saying by news agency AFP. "We are clear about how we use the information we collect, including the contact information that people upload or add to their own accounts. you can manage and delete contact information you've uploaded at any time." Two-factor authentication is intended to enhance security by requiring a second step, such as entering codes sent via text messages, as well as passwords to get into accounts. According to the study, phone numbers added to profiles, for security purposes, or for messaging were potential fodder for advertisers. Contact lists uploaded to Facebook platforms is also mined for personal information, meaning that people could unintentionally help advertisers target their friends. "Most worrisome, we found that phone numbers uploaded as part of syncing contacts -- that were never owned by a user and never listed on their account - were in fact used to enable PII-based advertising," researchers said in the study. Facebook is grappling with the worst crisis in its history, vilified for not more zealously guarding the information that users share. The Silicon Valley-based internet colossus faced intense global scrutiny over the mass harvesting of personal data by Cambridge Analytica, a British political consultancy that worked for Donald Trump's 2016 election campaign. The company has admitted up to 87 million users may have had their data hijacked in the scandal. (With inputs from news agencies)

Facebook admits phone numbers may be used to target ads

Facebook on Wednesday unveiled an upgraded Oculus virtual reality headset with power to handle the intensive graphics of digital worlds in a wire-free experience.

The new Oculus Quest headset showcased at the Facebook unit's developer conference is being aimed at gamers seeking immersion in virtual worlds, with other potential applications likely in the future.

"This is the wireless virtual reality experience we have been waiting for," Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said as he unveiled the new hardware and reaffirmed Facebook's commitment to virtual reality.&nbsp;

The standalone VR headset boasting the same quality experiences as the Oculus Rift but without wires will hit the market early next year at a price of $399.

Oculus vice president Hugo Barra said Quest combined the capabilities of Rift and the portability of Go, the current headgear in the company's lineup, with a strong focus on games.

Rift was the first VR gear released by Facebook-owned Oculus, but needs to be plugged into computers powerful enough to handle the graphics rich, immersive nature of digital worlds.

Go is a lightweight portable headset for virtual reality.

Step into 'Star Wars'&nbsp;

Oculus promised 50 game titles available at launch, including "Vader Immortal," which will let Quest users play through the opening episode of a new virtual reality experience set in a castle of infamous "Star Wars" villain Darth Vader.

The "Star Wars" virtual reality experience was described as a combination game and immersive film.

In a self-deprecating moment on stage, Zuckerberg recalled setting a goal of getting a billion people into virtual reality after buying Oculus some four years ago in a deal valued then at $2 billion.

He chuckled along with the audience as he shared a graph showing they were a scant one percent of the way to that goal.

"This isn't a question of whether we are going to get there, it is how," Zuckerberg said, while acknowledging the path may be longer than first expected.

He said a speed bump on the road to adoption that Quest was intended to solve was making VR more convenient and portable.

A second challenge, he said, was creating a vast, enticing ecosystem of games, films, meeting spaces and other experiences in virtual reality.

The two-day Connect conference was intended to inspire software makers to help create that ecosystem.

"We are going to make some big leaps in both technology and content," Zuckerberg told the gathering.

"This is all still early, but this is the basic road map."

Virtual visits&nbsp;

Anshel Sag, analyst at Moor Insights &amp; Strategy, said the Quest could make it easier to get into virtual reality gaming at a reasonable price.

"I think this brings console quality gaming and experiences to a price point that previously wasn't possible," Sag said.

"It makes it easier to get into virtual reality without spending a lot of money."

Despite technology advances in recent years, virtual reality gear remains the stuff of early-adopters like video game lovers and hasn't gone mainstream with consumers.

Facebook's vision of virtual reality goes far beyond games to a time when members of the leading online social network can virtually visit one another with the help of avatars.

"There is &nbsp;simply no substitute for being there," vice president of augmented and virtual reality Andrew Bosworth told the gathering.

"Tools we are building in AR and VR have the opportunity to answer the question of what it would be like to be transported." 
&nbsp;

Facebook on Wednesday unveiled an upgraded Oculus virtual reality headset with power to handle the intensive graphics of digital worlds in a wire-free experience.

Facebook on Wednesday unveiled an upgraded Oculus virtual reality headset with power to handle the intensive graphics of digital worlds in a wire-free experience. The new Oculus Quest headset showcased at the Facebook unit's developer conference is being aimed at gamers seeking immersion in virtual worlds, with other potential applications likely in the future. "This is the wireless virtual reality experience we have been waiting for," Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said as he unveiled the new hardware and reaffirmed Facebook's commitment to virtual reality. The standalone VR headset boasting the same quality experiences as the Oculus Rift but without wires will hit the market early next year at a price of $399. Oculus vice president Hugo Barra said Quest combined the capabilities of Rift and the portability of Go, the current headgear in the company's lineup, with a strong focus on games. Rift was the first VR gear released by Facebook-owned Oculus, but needs to be plugged into computers powerful enough to handle the graphics rich, immersive nature of digital worlds. Go is a lightweight portable headset for virtual reality. Step into 'Star Wars' Oculus promised 50 game titles available at launch, including "Vader Immortal," which will let Quest users play through the opening episode of a new virtual reality experience set in a castle of infamous "Star Wars" villain Darth Vader. The "Star Wars" virtual reality experience was described as a combination game and immersive film. In a self-deprecating moment on stage, Zuckerberg recalled setting a goal of getting a billion people into virtual reality after buying Oculus some four years ago in a deal valued then at $2 billion. He chuckled along with the audience as he shared a graph showing they were a scant one percent of the way to that goal. "This isn't a question of whether we are going to get there, it is how," Zuckerberg said, while acknowledging the path may be longer than first expected. He said a speed bump on the road to adoption that Quest was intended to solve was making VR more convenient and portable. A second challenge, he said, was creating a vast, enticing ecosystem of games, films, meeting spaces and other experiences in virtual reality. The two-day Connect conference was intended to inspire software makers to help create that ecosystem. "We are going to make some big leaps in both technology and content," Zuckerberg told the gathering. "This is all still early, but this is the basic road map." Virtual visits Anshel Sag, analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy, said the Quest could make it easier to get into virtual reality gaming at a reasonable price. "I think this brings console quality gaming and experiences to a price point that previously wasn't possible," Sag said. "It makes it easier to get into virtual reality without spending a lot of money." Despite technology advances in recent years, virtual reality gear remains the stuff of early-adopters like video game lovers and hasn't gone mainstream with consumers. Facebook's vision of virtual reality goes far beyond games to a time when members of the leading online social network can virtually visit one another with the help of avatars. "There is simply no substitute for being there," vice president of augmented and virtual reality Andrew Bosworth told the gathering. "Tools we are building in AR and VR have the opportunity to answer the question of what it would be like to be transported."

Facebook unveils upgraded wireless Oculus headset in VR push

Shares of Facebook Inc fell more than 2 per cent in early trading on Tuesday after the two founders of photo-sharing app Instagram left the social networking giant under unexplained circumstances.

Analysts said the departure of Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger may have been the result of friction with Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg over how Facebook`s fastest-growing revenue generator is run.

"Our sense is the duo may have wanted to run Instagram more independently than their parent company wanted," said Scott Kessler, an analyst at research firm CFRA.

"We think (the) departures are a notable negative for Facebook."

The sudden loss of the pair follows the departures of WhatsApp co-founders Jan Koum and Brian Acton and a reshuffling of Facebook`s executive ranks earlier this year.

A Bloomberg report said Systrom and Krieger had been frustrated by a rise in the day-to-day involvement of Zuckerberg, who has become more reliant on Instagram in planning for Facebook`s future.

Facebook`s shares were down 2.4 per cent at $161.51 in early trading, knocking more than $11 billion off the stock`s market value.

"To the extent that their departures represent Zuckerberg exercising more power and being less accountable, such a development would underscore the need for an independent board chair," said Jonas Kron, senior vice president at Trillium Asset Management.

The institutional investor, which holds more than 52,000 shares in Facebook, urged Facebook in July to appoint an independent board chair to oversee management. 
Systrom wrote in a blog post on Monday that he and Krieger planned to take time off and explore "our curiosity and creativity again".

Zuckerberg described the two as "extraordinary product leaders" and said he wished them all the best and was looking forward to seeing what they build next.

Facebook bought Instagram in 2012 for $1 billion. Instagram had been hailed in Silicon Valley as a flashy acquisition done right, with the team kept relatively small and Systrom having the freedom to add features such as peer-to-peer messaging, video uploads and advertising.

Instagram has over 1 billion active monthly users, a sharp rise from the 30 million users when Facebook bought the app.

Facebook`s shares are currently down about 6 per cent this year, following six years of stellar gains.

Concerns over the fallout of the Cambridge Analytica privacy scandal and signals that a rise in costs would hurt Facebook`s margins for years, fueled the biggest one-day wipeout in US stock market history in July.

Shares of Facebook Inc fell more than 2 per cent in early trading on Tuesday after the two founders of photo-sharing app Instagram left the social networking giant under unexplained circumstances.

Shares of Facebook Inc fell more than 2 per cent in early trading on Tuesday after the two founders of photo-sharing app Instagram left the social networking giant under unexplained circumstances. Analysts said the departure of Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger may have been the result of friction with Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg over how Facebook`s fastest-growing revenue generator is run. "Our sense is the duo may have wanted to run Instagram more independently than their parent company wanted," said Scott Kessler, an analyst at research firm CFRA. "We think (the) departures are a notable negative for Facebook." The sudden loss of the pair follows the departures of WhatsApp co-founders Jan Koum and Brian Acton and a reshuffling of Facebook`s executive ranks earlier this year. A Bloomberg report said Systrom and Krieger had been frustrated by a rise in the day-to-day involvement of Zuckerberg, who has become more reliant on Instagram in planning for Facebook`s future. Facebook`s shares were down 2.4 per cent at $161.51 in early trading, knocking more than $11 billion off the stock`s market value. "To the extent that their departures represent Zuckerberg exercising more power and being less accountable, such a development would underscore the need for an independent board chair," said Jonas Kron, senior vice president at Trillium Asset Management. The institutional investor, which holds more than 52,000 shares in Facebook, urged Facebook in July to appoint an independent board chair to oversee management. Systrom wrote in a blog post on Monday that he and Krieger planned to take time off and explore "our curiosity and creativity again". Zuckerberg described the two as "extraordinary product leaders" and said he wished them all the best and was looking forward to seeing what they build next. Facebook bought Instagram in 2012 for $1 billion. Instagram had been hailed in Silicon Valley as a flashy acquisition done right, with the team kept relatively small and Systrom having the freedom to add features such as peer-to-peer messaging, video uploads and advertising. Instagram has over 1 billion active monthly users, a sharp rise from the 30 million users when Facebook bought the app. Facebook`s shares are currently down about 6 per cent this year, following six years of stellar gains. Concerns over the fallout of the Cambridge Analytica privacy scandal and signals that a rise in costs would hurt Facebook`s margins for years, fueled the biggest one-day wipeout in US stock market history in July.

Facebook shares slip after Instagram founders quit

<a href="http://wionews.com/world/us-has-dropped-war-games-in-korean-peninsula-ready-to-change-the-world-says-trump-after-meeting-kim-143832">'</a><a href="http://wionews.com/world/us-has-dropped-war-games-in-korean-peninsula-ready-to-change-the-world-says-trump-after-meeting-kim-143832">US</a><a href="http://wionews.com/world/us-has-dropped-war-games-in-korean-peninsula-ready-to-change-the-world-says-trump-after-meeting-kim-143832"> has dropped war games in Korean Peninsula, ready to change the world,' says Trump after meeting Kim</a>

US President Trump praised North Korean leader Kim Jong-un calling him "very talented" and a "special person" as he addressed a press conference after an exhilarating day of high-level diplomacy on Tuesday.

<a href="http://wionews.com/india-news/spiritual-leader-bhaiyyuji-maharaj-shoots-himself-dead-143835">Spiritual leader turned minister Bhaiyyuji Maharaj shoots self</a>

According to reports, self-styled guru and Hindu spiritual leader Bhaiyyuji Maharaj allegedly shot himself today. He was rushed to Indore's Bombay Hospital where he was declared dead.&nbsp

<a href="http://wionews.com/world/facebook-launches-user-review-potential-bans-for-advertisers-143891">Facebook launches user review, potential bans for advertisers</a>

Facebook Inc said on Tuesday it would allow users to review businesses that advertise on the social network and possibly ban those that receive the most negative feedback.

<a href="http://wionews.com/india-news/delhi-minister-begins-hunger-strike-as-cm-others-wait-to-meet-143853">'Dharna without reason' says L-G's office as Kejriwal continues sit-in</a>

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his cabinet colleagues, who spent the night at the lieutenant governor's office, today dug in their heels with Health Minister Satyendar Jain beginning an indefinite hunger strike to press for their demands.

<a href="http://wionews.com/south-asia/pakistani-supreme-court-rejects-7-year-old-zainab-killers-appeal-143883">Pakistani Supreme court rejects 7-year-old Zainab killer's appeal</a>

The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Tuesday rejected an appeal against the death sentence of a man convicted of raping and murdering a seven-year-old girl in the eastern city of Kasur, a crime which shocked the country at the beginning of the year and triggered protests in several cities nationwide.

&nbsp

'US has dropped war games in Korean Peninsula, ready to change the world,' says Trump after meeting Kim US President Trump praised North Korean leader Kim Jong-un calling him "very talented" and a "special person" as he addressed a press conference after an exhilarating day of high-level diplomacy on Tuesday. Spiritual leader turned minister Bhaiyyuji Maharaj shoots self According to reports, self-styled guru and Hindu spiritual leader Bhaiyyuji Maharaj allegedly shot himself today. He was rushed to Indore's Bombay Hospital where he was declared dead. Facebook launches user review, potential bans for advertisers Facebook Inc said on Tuesday it would allow users to review businesses that advertise on the social network and possibly ban those that receive the most negative feedback. 'Dharna without reason' says L-G's office as Kejriwal continues sit-in Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his cabinet colleagues, who spent the night at the lieutenant governor's office, today dug in their heels with Health Minister Satyendar Jain beginning an indefinite hunger strike to press for their demands. Pakistani Supreme court rejects 7-year-old Zainab killer's appeal The Supreme Court of Pakistan on Tuesday rejected an appeal against the death sentence of a man convicted of raping and murdering a seven-year-old girl in the eastern city of Kasur, a crime which shocked the country at the beginning of the year and triggered protests in several cities nationwide.

News brief: Big stories of the day

Facebook Inc said on Tuesday it would allow users to review businesses that advertise on the social network and possibly ban those that receive the most negative feedback.

The move is aimed at cracking down on businesses whose ads mislead users into buying low-quality goods or services or firms that fail to deliver products in their stated shipping time.

Facebook users can leave feedback for their viewed ads under the "Ads Activity" tab, the company said in a blog post.

Advertisers will be given a chance to improve before further action is taken, which might include a reduction in the amount of ads that particular business can run.

"We believe this tool will give people more confidence in the businesses they interact with and help hold businesses more accountable for customer experiences they provide," Facebook said.

This is one of the many changes by the world's largest social media network to enhance user experience and engagement after it was embroiled in a huge scandal where millions of users' data was improperly accessed by a political consultancy.

Facebook calls itself "an advertising-supported service" and requires people to accept targeted ads as a condition of using its platform.

The move is aimed at cracking down on businesses whose ads mislead users into buying low-quality goods or services or firms that fail to deliver products in their stated shipping time

Facebook Inc said on Tuesday it would allow users to review businesses that advertise on the social network and possibly ban those that receive the most negative feedback. The move is aimed at cracking down on businesses whose ads mislead users into buying low-quality goods or services or firms that fail to deliver products in their stated shipping time. Facebook users can leave feedback for their viewed ads under the "Ads Activity" tab, the company said in a blog post. Advertisers will be given a chance to improve before further action is taken, which might include a reduction in the amount of ads that particular business can run. "We believe this tool will give people more confidence in the businesses they interact with and help hold businesses more accountable for customer experiences they provide," Facebook said. This is one of the many changes by the world's largest social media network to enhance user experience and engagement after it was embroiled in a huge scandal where millions of users' data was improperly accessed by a political consultancy. Facebook calls itself "an advertising-supported service" and requires people to accept targeted ads as a condition of using its platform.

Facebook launches user review, potential bans for advertisers

Myanmar's&nbsp;hardline&nbsp;monks&nbsp;will dodge&nbsp;bans on&nbsp;Facebook&nbsp;and keep using it to "tell the truth", they said on Friday, after the social media giant barred several Buddhist nationalists for hate messages targeting Rohingya Muslims.

United Nations officials investigating a possible genocide in&nbsp;Myanmar&nbsp;have said&nbsp;Facebook&nbsp;has been a source of propaganda against the minority in a country where it has become a near-ubiquitous communications tool as the economy opens up.

Myanmar's nationalist&nbsp;monks&nbsp;and activists, who have emerged as a political force in recent years, have been sharing violent and angry rhetoric on&nbsp;Facebook&nbsp;targeting the minority, seen by many in the Buddhist-majority country as illegal immigrants.

"It is a violation of freedom of expression," Thuseitta, a member of the Patriotic&nbsp;Myanmar&nbsp;Monks' Union told Reuters hours after&nbsp;Facebook&nbsp;identified him as a "hate figure".

"We will keep using&nbsp;Facebook&nbsp;with different names and accounts to tell the truth to people."

Nearly 700,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled to neighbouring&nbsp;Bangladesh, the United Nations and aid agencies have said, following an army crackdown after Rohingya insurgent attacks last August.

Washington has called the army response "ethnic cleansing" - a charge&nbsp;Myanmar&nbsp;denies, saying its security forces have been waging a legitimate counter-insurgency operation against "Bengali terrorists".

Pinnyawenta, another monk from the union whose account was deactivated in May after repeatedly being asked by&nbsp;Facebook&nbsp;to remove some posts, said he had registered again under another name and would "continue to write about the truth" on the site.

In an email message,&nbsp;Facebook&nbsp;told Reuters it was "investing more in the teams who are working on&nbsp;Myanmar" as it seeks to "understand and respond to&nbsp;Myanmar's unique technical challenges".

"There's always more we can do to get ahead of these repeat offenders, and we are committed to improving our detection tools to remove them from&nbsp;Facebook&nbsp;as quickly as possible," the company said.

The California-based company will invest more in artificial intelligence to deal with languages inMyanmar, it said.

Facebook&nbsp;added that it had designated as "hate figures and organizations" a radical Buddhist group, Ma Ba Tha, and several prominent&nbsp;monks&nbsp;known for vitriol towards Rohingya, blocking them from the platform.

The move had led to the removal of "a lot of harmful and violating content", it said.

Ei Myat Noe Khin, a manager of Yangon-based Phandeeyar, which helped&nbsp;Facebook&nbsp;translate its Burmese-language community standards, urged the company to hire more people who are unbiased and understand&nbsp;Myanmar&nbsp;well.

That would be the only way for&nbsp;Facebook&nbsp;to tackle the proliferating accounts behind the rumours spread to trigger violence, riots and conflict, she added.

United Nations officials investigating a possible genocide in Myanmar have said Facebook has been a source of propaganda against the minority in a country

Myanmar's hardline monks will dodge bans on Facebook and keep using it to "tell the truth", they said on Friday, after the social media giant barred several Buddhist nationalists for hate messages targeting Rohingya Muslims. United Nations officials investigating a possible genocide in Myanmar have said Facebook has been a source of propaganda against the minority in a country where it has become a near-ubiquitous communications tool as the economy opens up. Myanmar's nationalist monks and activists, who have emerged as a political force in recent years, have been sharing violent and angry rhetoric on Facebook targeting the minority, seen by many in the Buddhist-majority country as illegal immigrants. "It is a violation of freedom of expression," Thuseitta, a member of the Patriotic Myanmar Monks' Union told Reuters hours after Facebook identified him as a "hate figure". "We will keep using Facebook with different names and accounts to tell the truth to people." Nearly 700,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled to neighbouring Bangladesh, the United Nations and aid agencies have said, following an army crackdown after Rohingya insurgent attacks last August. Washington has called the army response "ethnic cleansing" - a charge Myanmar denies, saying its security forces have been waging a legitimate counter-insurgency operation against "Bengali terrorists". Pinnyawenta, another monk from the union whose account was deactivated in May after repeatedly being asked by Facebook to remove some posts, said he had registered again under another name and would "continue to write about the truth" on the site. In an email message, Facebook told Reuters it was "investing more in the teams who are working on Myanmar" as it seeks to "understand and respond to Myanmar's unique technical challenges". "There's always more we can do to get ahead of these repeat offenders, and we are committed to improving our detection tools to remove them from Facebook as quickly as possible," the company said. The California-based company will invest more in artificial intelligence to deal with languages inMyanmar, it said. Facebook added that it had designated as "hate figures and organizations" a radical Buddhist group, Ma Ba Tha, and several prominent monks known for vitriol towards Rohingya, blocking them from the platform. The move had led to the removal of "a lot of harmful and violating content", it said. Ei Myat Noe Khin, a manager of Yangon-based Phandeeyar, which helped Facebook translate its Burmese-language community standards, urged the company to hire more people who are unbiased and understand Myanmar well. That would be the only way for Facebook to tackle the proliferating accounts behind the rumours spread to trigger violence, riots and conflict, she added.

Myanmar hardline monks vow to stay on Facebook despite ban

After facing flak for improperly sharing personal data of millions of users, popular social networking site Facebook has now invited new criticism.

The social media&nbsp;acknowledged on Thursday that a software glitch had changed the privacy setting of its users by making their personal posts public.&nbsp;

According to Facebook, some 14 million users were affected by the technical glitch between May 18 and May 27.

Erin Egan, Facebook's chief privacy officer, said that the company recently "found a bug that automatically suggested posting publicly when some people were creating their Facebook posts."

Facebook said the bug surfaced when the social media was implementing a new way to share the posts.&nbsp;

The bug made the default setting or suggested a method of sharing the posts as "public" instead of "only for specific users"&nbsp;or "friends".

Facebook added that though it corrected the problem on May 22, it could not change all the posts and therefore was notifying the affected users.

Chief privacy officer Egan said,"To be clear, this bug did not impact anything people had posted before -- and they could still choose their audience just as they always have. We'd like to apologize for this mistake."

He added, "Starting today we are letting everyone affected know and asking them to review any posts they made during that time".

The social networking site has recently faced a series of embarrassments over the misuse of personal data of millions of its users.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg admitted in April to have made a "huge mistake" as personal data of up to 87 million users may have been improperly shared with Cambridge Analytica.

The social networking site which was founded in 2004, had reached data-sharing partnerships with at least 60 device makers including Apple, Amazon, BlackBerry, Microsoft and Samsung over the last decade.

The social media acknowledged on Thursday that a software glitch changed had the privacy setting of its users by making their personal posts public

After facing flak for improperly sharing personal data of millions of users, popular social networking site Facebook has now invited new criticism. The social media acknowledged on Thursday that a software glitch had changed the privacy setting of its users by making their personal posts public. According to Facebook, some 14 million users were affected by the technical glitch between May 18 and May 27. Erin Egan, Facebook's chief privacy officer, said that the company recently "found a bug that automatically suggested posting publicly when some people were creating their Facebook posts." Facebook said the bug surfaced when the social media was implementing a new way to share the posts. The bug made the default setting or suggested a method of sharing the posts as "public" instead of "only for specific users" or "friends". Facebook added that though it corrected the problem on May 22, it could not change all the posts and therefore was notifying the affected users. Chief privacy officer Egan said,"To be clear, this bug did not impact anything people had posted before -- and they could still choose their audience just as they always have. We'd like to apologize for this mistake." He added, "Starting today we are letting everyone affected know and asking them to review any posts they made during that time". The social networking site has recently faced a series of embarrassments over the misuse of personal data of millions of its users. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg admitted in April to have made a "huge mistake" as personal data of up to 87 million users may have been improperly shared with Cambridge Analytica. The social networking site which was founded in 2004, had reached data-sharing partnerships with at least 60 device makers including Apple, Amazon, BlackBerry, Microsoft and Samsung over the last decade.

Now, Facebook acknowledges 'bug' turned users' private posts public

The Indian government asked Facebook to respond by June 20 the media reports of sharing user data without the consent of the users.

The official statement states, "Recently there are media reports claiming that Facebook has agreements which are allowing phone and other device manufacturers access to its users' personal information, including that of their friends, without taking their explicit consent. The Government of India is deeply concerned about reports of such lapses/violations".

"The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has sought an explanation from Facebook seeking a detailed factual report on the issue. Facebook has been asked to respond by June 20."

Already facing criticism over the data breach scandal, Facebook came under fire again on Wednesday after the reports that it shared data with four Chinese mobile manufacturing firms.

The company also acknowledged the reports on Wednesday and said that it is ending the agreement with Huawei.

The United States also criticised Facebook after Republican and Democratic lawmakers demanded that the social media be more forthcoming about data it has shared with the Chinese companies.

Facebook had earlier revealed 87 million users' account was hacked after a UK-based firm Cambridge Analytica was accused of harvesting Facebook data.

New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood said the "data-sharing partnerships with other corporations" is part of the ongoing investigation into the reported misuse of Facebook user data by Cambridge Analytica.

Facebook faced criticism in the United States on Wednesday from Republican and Democratic lawmakers who demanded that the social media company be more forthcoming about data it has shared with four Chinese firms

The Indian government asked Facebook to respond by June 20 the media reports of sharing user data without the consent of the users. The official statement states, "Recently there are media reports claiming that Facebook has agreements which are allowing phone and other device manufacturers access to its users' personal information, including that of their friends, without taking their explicit consent. The Government of India is deeply concerned about reports of such lapses/violations". "The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has sought an explanation from Facebook seeking a detailed factual report on the issue. Facebook has been asked to respond by June 20." Already facing criticism over the data breach scandal, Facebook came under fire again on Wednesday after the reports that it shared data with four Chinese mobile manufacturing firms. The company also acknowledged the reports on Wednesday and said that it is ending the agreement with Huawei. The United States also criticised Facebook after Republican and Democratic lawmakers demanded that the social media be more forthcoming about data it has shared with the Chinese companies. Facebook had earlier revealed 87 million users' account was hacked after a UK-based firm Cambridge Analytica was accused of harvesting Facebook data. New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood said the "data-sharing partnerships with other corporations" is part of the ongoing investigation into the reported misuse of Facebook user data by Cambridge Analytica.

India seeks Facebook's response over reports of data sharing without consent

Facebook has blacklisted a group of Myanmar Buddhist hardliners including monks notorious for bilious hate speech against Rohingya Muslims, the company said Thursday, as it scrambles to show it is tackling inflammatory content.

The social media company plays an outsized role in a country that has only recently come online and boasts 18 million accounts among the population of around 50 million people.

UN investigators have said that Facebook has morphed into a "beast" in the country and that hate speech and incitement to violence against the Rohingya are rampant on the site.

Some 700,000 Rohingya have fled a violent army crackdown in Myanmar to Bangladesh since August last year -- after years of increasingly violent and angry discourse against the minority, much of it playing out on Facebook.

In response, Facebook this week has undertaken its highest-profile visit yet to Myanmar.

It banned the Buddhist nationalist movement Ma Ba Tha from its platform, as well as a pair of prominent monks known for stoking hatred towards the Rohingya.

"They are not allowed a presence on Facebook, and we will remove any accounts and content which support, praise or represent these individuals or organisations," said Content Policy Manager David Caragliano.

Extremist monks Parmaukkha and Thuseitta join their fellow firebrand clergyman Wirathu on the blacklist after he was banned in January.

Activists have criticised the platform for responding too slowly to reports of malicious posts, with some content being shared by users for more than 48 hours before being removed.

Examples include calls for the killing of a Muslim journalist and posts last September saying Buddhists and Muslims were each preparing attacks against the other.

Activists flagged these repeatedly to Facebook but it still took several days for the platform to act.&nbsp;

"We can do more, and we have been slow to respond," admitted Facebook Vice President of Public Policy in Asia-Pacific Simon Milner.

He said Facebook is increasing the number of people working on Myanmar from Singapore and Bangkok, including those who speak the language, although declined to give specific numbers.

The platform says it is also stepping up measures to prevent fake accounts and block repeat offenders while improving systems for users to report harmful content.

Myanmar activists welcomed the high profile visit but urged the platform to be more transparent.

"What is the time it takes to remove harmful content? How many people do we have in the team that speak Myanmar?" tech hub Phandeeya CEO Jes Kaliebe Petersen asked.

"Users deserve to know."

Facebook is caught up in a data sharing scandal that also stirred furious debate on its responsibilities for the content users share including "fake news" and hate speech. 
&nbsp;

The social media company plays an outsized role in a country that has only recently come online and boasts 18 million accounts among the population of around 50 million people

Facebook has blacklisted a group of Myanmar Buddhist hardliners including monks notorious for bilious hate speech against Rohingya Muslims, the company said Thursday, as it scrambles to show it is tackling inflammatory content. The social media company plays an outsized role in a country that has only recently come online and boasts 18 million accounts among the population of around 50 million people. UN investigators have said that Facebook has morphed into a "beast" in the country and that hate speech and incitement to violence against the Rohingya are rampant on the site. Some 700,000 Rohingya have fled a violent army crackdown in Myanmar to Bangladesh since August last year -- after years of increasingly violent and angry discourse against the minority, much of it playing out on Facebook. In response, Facebook this week has undertaken its highest-profile visit yet to Myanmar. It banned the Buddhist nationalist movement Ma Ba Tha from its platform, as well as a pair of prominent monks known for stoking hatred towards the Rohingya. "They are not allowed a presence on Facebook, and we will remove any accounts and content which support, praise or represent these individuals or organisations," said Content Policy Manager David Caragliano. Extremist monks Parmaukkha and Thuseitta join their fellow firebrand clergyman Wirathu on the blacklist after he was banned in January. Activists have criticised the platform for responding too slowly to reports of malicious posts, with some content being shared by users for more than 48 hours before being removed. Examples include calls for the killing of a Muslim journalist and posts last September saying Buddhists and Muslims were each preparing attacks against the other. Activists flagged these repeatedly to Facebook but it still took several days for the platform to act. "We can do more, and we have been slow to respond," admitted Facebook Vice President of Public Policy in Asia-Pacific Simon Milner. He said Facebook is increasing the number of people working on Myanmar from Singapore and Bangkok, including those who speak the language, although declined to give specific numbers. The platform says it is also stepping up measures to prevent fake accounts and block repeat offenders while improving systems for users to report harmful content. Myanmar activists welcomed the high profile visit but urged the platform to be more transparent. "What is the time it takes to remove harmful content? How many people do we have in the team that speak Myanmar?" tech hub Phandeeya CEO Jes Kaliebe Petersen asked. "Users deserve to know." Facebook is caught up in a data sharing scandal that also stirred furious debate on its responsibilities for the content users share including "fake news" and hate speech.

Facebook blacklists Myanmar hardline Buddhist group

Three months after Sri Lanka was rocked by deadly anti-Muslim riots fuelled by online vitriol, Facebook is training its staff to identify inflammatory content in the country's local languages.

The social network has been seeking penance in Sri Lanka after authorities blocked Facebook in March as incendiary posts by Buddhist hardliners fanned religious violence that left three people dead and reduced hundreds of mosques, homes and businesses to ashes.

Until the week-long ban, appeals to Facebook to act against the contagion of hate speech had been met with deafening silence, at a time when the California-based tech giant was reeling from unprecedented global scrutiny over fake news and user privacy.

"We did make mistakes and we were slow," Facebook spokeswoman Amrit Ahuja told AFP in Colombo.&nbsp;

The dearth of staff fluent in Sinhala -- the language spoken by Sri Lanka's largest ethnic group -- compounded the issue, with government officials and activists saying the oversight allowed extremist content to flourish undetected on the platform.

Ahuja said Facebook was committed to hiring more Sinhala speakers but declined to say how many were currently employed in Sri Lanka.

"This is the problem we are trying to address with Facebook. They need more Sinhala resources", said the island's telecommunications minister Harin Fernando.&nbsp;

Since the violence broke out in March, two high-level delegations from the company have visited Sri Lanka, where ethnic divisions linger after decades of war, to assure the government of its intent.

Ahuja said Facebook was working with civil society organisations to familiarise its staff with Sinhala slurs and racist epithets.

Complex local nuances have added to the challenge. The word for "brother" in Tamil -- also an official language in the country -- can be a derogatory term in Sinhala when a slight inflection is used.

Desperate measures

Fernando said the decision to impose an island-wide blackout on Facebook -- used by one in three Sri Lankans -- was taken as a last resort to prevent an escalation of violence.

Buddhist monks freely shared images of masked men attacking mosques and urged others to do the same in the weeks before the riots erupted in Kandy.

Sinhala extremists used the social network to recruit rioters and organise their travel to the troubled area, from where violence later spread.

A meme in Sinhala, which remained online for weeks, urged death to all Muslims, including children.

A man who reported it to Facebook was told it did not violate "specific community standards".

In addition to government warnings, Fernando told AFP that Facebook users lodged thousands of complaints over extremist content, but were met with silence.

"It was not something that I liked doing. But if we didn't block Facebook, the violence would have spread out of control," he said.

Eventually the army was given special powers to restore order under the first state of emergency declared in the 21-million-strong nation since the end of the civil war in 2009.

'Action needed'

Ahuja said Facebook has since taken down "hate figures and organisations" in Sri Lanka including the Bodu Bala Sena, a radical Buddhist outfit that is blamed for attacks against Muslims in recent years.

Its spokesman Dilantha Withanage complained the group and its leader -- the notorious extremist monk Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara -- were being unfairly targeted.

"We can't even post a photo of venerable Gnanasara on Facebook," Withanage told AFP.

But videos of his sermons can still be seen on the social network. Other extremists have also slipped through the cracks, activists say, despite repeated requests to have their accounts removed.

Last year another extremist Buddhist group, Sinhale Jathika Balamuluwa, urged followers via Facebook Live to storm a UN compound sheltering Rohingya Muslims. Police had to be called in to protect the refugees from the mob.

Several Facebook pages for the group have been blocked in Sri Lanka but the same content can be viewed under alternate names, activists say.&nbsp;

"Facebook is only now being held to account over things that since 2013 were evident...(to) us," said Sanjana Hattotuwa, a researcher who has studied Islamophobia on Facebook in Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka's Centre for Policy Alternatives said Facebook needed to offer more than "cookie cutter" pledges to clean up its act.

"The time for promises has passed. Action is what's needed, and transparency and accountability," said Hattotuwa.

Ahuja said Facebook was committed to hiring more Sinhala speakers but declined to say how many were currently employed in Sri Lanka

Three months after Sri Lanka was rocked by deadly anti-Muslim riots fuelled by online vitriol, Facebook is training its staff to identify inflammatory content in the country's local languages. The social network has been seeking penance in Sri Lanka after authorities blocked Facebook in March as incendiary posts by Buddhist hardliners fanned religious violence that left three people dead and reduced hundreds of mosques, homes and businesses to ashes. Until the week-long ban, appeals to Facebook to act against the contagion of hate speech had been met with deafening silence, at a time when the California-based tech giant was reeling from unprecedented global scrutiny over fake news and user privacy. "We did make mistakes and we were slow," Facebook spokeswoman Amrit Ahuja told AFP in Colombo. The dearth of staff fluent in Sinhala -- the language spoken by Sri Lanka's largest ethnic group -- compounded the issue, with government officials and activists saying the oversight allowed extremist content to flourish undetected on the platform. Ahuja said Facebook was committed to hiring more Sinhala speakers but declined to say how many were currently employed in Sri Lanka. "This is the problem we are trying to address with Facebook. They need more Sinhala resources", said the island's telecommunications minister Harin Fernando. Since the violence broke out in March, two high-level delegations from the company have visited Sri Lanka, where ethnic divisions linger after decades of war, to assure the government of its intent. Ahuja said Facebook was working with civil society organisations to familiarise its staff with Sinhala slurs and racist epithets. Complex local nuances have added to the challenge. The word for "brother" in Tamil -- also an official language in the country -- can be a derogatory term in Sinhala when a slight inflection is used. Desperate measures Fernando said the decision to impose an island-wide blackout on Facebook -- used by one in three Sri Lankans -- was taken as a last resort to prevent an escalation of violence. Buddhist monks freely shared images of masked men attacking mosques and urged others to do the same in the weeks before the riots erupted in Kandy. Sinhala extremists used the social network to recruit rioters and organise their travel to the troubled area, from where violence later spread. A meme in Sinhala, which remained online for weeks, urged death to all Muslims, including children. A man who reported it to Facebook was told it did not violate "specific community standards". In addition to government warnings, Fernando told AFP that Facebook users lodged thousands of complaints over extremist content, but were met with silence. "It was not something that I liked doing. But if we didn't block Facebook, the violence would have spread out of control," he said. Eventually the army was given special powers to restore order under the first state of emergency declared in the 21-million-strong nation since the end of the civil war in 2009. 'Action needed' Ahuja said Facebook has since taken down "hate figures and organisations" in Sri Lanka including the Bodu Bala Sena, a radical Buddhist outfit that is blamed for attacks against Muslims in recent years. Its spokesman Dilantha Withanage complained the group and its leader -- the notorious extremist monk Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara -- were being unfairly targeted. "We can't even post a photo of venerable Gnanasara on Facebook," Withanage told AFP. But videos of his sermons can still be seen on the social network. Other extremists have also slipped through the cracks, activists say, despite repeated requests to have their accounts removed. Last year another extremist Buddhist group, Sinhale Jathika Balamuluwa, urged followers via Facebook Live to storm a UN compound sheltering Rohingya Muslims. Police had to be called in to protect the refugees from the mob. Several Facebook pages for the group have been blocked in Sri Lanka but the same content can be viewed under alternate names, activists say. "Facebook is only now being held to account over things that since 2013 were evident...(to) us," said Sanjana Hattotuwa, a researcher who has studied Islamophobia on Facebook in Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka's Centre for Policy Alternatives said Facebook needed to offer more than "cookie cutter" pledges to clean up its act. "The time for promises has passed. Action is what's needed, and transparency and accountability," said Hattotuwa.

Facebook staff to learn Sinhala insults after Sri Lanka riots

&nbsp;Mark &nbsp;Zuckerberg-led&nbsp;Facebook <a href="http://wionews.com/videos/apple-blocks-facebook-web-tracking-tools--142468">which was hit by a data breach </a>scandal recently, said today that Chinese phone makers were&nbsp;given access to data on users.

"Facebook along with many other <a href="http://wionews.com/world/facebook-shared-user-data-with-over-60-device-makers-including-apple-samsung-report-142133">US tech companies have worked</a> with them and other Chinese manufacturers to integrate their services onto these phones," Facebook mobile partnerships leader Francisco Varela said in a statement.

The social network said it would end the agreement with Huawei later this week including three other partnerships with Chinese firms. Members of Congress had raised concern over data of users' friends could have been accessed without their explicit consent. Facebook denied it would happen.

"Given the interest from Congress, we wanted to make clear that all the information from these integrations with Huawei was stored on the device, not on Huawei's servers," it said.

US intelligence officials have maintained that Chinese phones allow foreign espionage and therefore are a threat to national security. The Pentagon had earlier ordered retail outlets on US military bases to stop selling Huawei and ZTE phones, citing potential security risks.

Senator Mark Warner, vice chairman of the Intelligence Committee in a statement said House of Representatives Intelligence Committee had raised concerns about Huawei dating back in 2012.

"The news that Facebook provided privileged access to Facebook's API to Chinese device makers like Huawei and TCL raises legitimate concerns, and I look forward to learning more about how Facebook ensured that information about their users was not sent to Chinese servers," Warner said.

Facebook had earlier revealed 87 million users' account was hacked after a UK-based firm Cambridge Analytica was accused of harvesting Facebook data.

New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood said the "data-sharing partnerships with other corporations" is part of the ongoing investigation into the reported misuse of Facebook user data by Cambridge Analytica.

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Senator Mark Warner, vice chairman of the Intelligence Committee in a statement said House of Representatives Intelligence Committee had raised concerns

Mark Zuckerberg-led Facebook which was hit by a data breach scandal recently, said today that Chinese phone makers were given access to data on users. "Facebook along with many other US tech companies have worked with them and other Chinese manufacturers to integrate their services onto these phones," Facebook mobile partnerships leader Francisco Varela said in a statement. The social network said it would end the agreement with Huawei later this week including three other partnerships with Chinese firms. Members of Congress had raised concern over data of users' friends could have been accessed without their explicit consent. Facebook denied it would happen. "Given the interest from Congress, we wanted to make clear that all the information from these integrations with Huawei was stored on the device, not on Huawei's servers," it said. US intelligence officials have maintained that Chinese phones allow foreign espionage and therefore are a threat to national security. The Pentagon had earlier ordered retail outlets on US military bases to stop selling Huawei and ZTE phones, citing potential security risks. Senator Mark Warner, vice chairman of the Intelligence Committee in a statement said House of Representatives Intelligence Committee had raised concerns about Huawei dating back in 2012. "The news that Facebook provided privileged access to Facebook's API to Chinese device makers like Huawei and TCL raises legitimate concerns, and I look forward to learning more about how Facebook ensured that information about their users was not sent to Chinese servers," Warner said. Facebook had earlier revealed 87 million users' account was hacked after a UK-based firm Cambridge Analytica was accused of harvesting Facebook data. New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood said the "data-sharing partnerships with other corporations" is part of the ongoing investigation into the reported misuse of Facebook user data by Cambridge Analytica.

Huawei stores our information on phone, not on servers: Facebook

The US&nbsp;Senate Commerce Committee demanded that Facebook Inc's chief executive officer respond to a report that <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-shared-user-data-with-over-60-device-makers-including-apple-samsung-report-142133">user data was shared</a> with at least 60 device manufacturers, weeks after the social media company said it would change its practices after a political firm got access to data from millions of users.

Senators John Thune, the Republican chairman, and Bill Nelson, the ranking Democrat, on Tuesday wrote to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg after the New York Times reported that manufacturers were able to access user friends’ data even if the friends denied permission to share the information with third parties.

The letter asks if Facebook audited partnerships with the device manufacturers under a 2011 consent order with the Federal Trade Commission. It also asked if Zuckerberg wanted to revise his testimony before the Senate in April.

Facebook said it looks forward to addressing any questions the Commerce Committee has.

Facebook still has not answered hundreds of written questions submitted from members of Congress after Zuckerberg's testimony in April, according to congressional staff.

The data sharing mentioned in the Times story was used over the last decade used by about 60 companies, including Amazon.com Inc, Apple, Blackberry Ltd, HTC Corp, Microsoft Corp and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, Ime Archibong, Facebook vice president of product partnerships, wrote in a blog post on June 3.

The letter from Thune and Nelson seeks the names of all manufacturers that received user data. Senator Mark Warner, the vice chairman of the Intelligence Committee, asked Facebook if Chinese firms Huawei Technologies Co Ltd, ZTE Corp or Xiaomi were among the companies that received user data. Facebook did not immediately respond to the question.

Chinese telecommunications companies have come under scrutiny from U.S. intelligence officials who argue they provide an opportunity for foreign espionage and threaten critical U.S. infrastructure, something the Chinese have consistently denied.

The Federal Trade Commission confirmed in March that it was investigating Facebook's privacy practices.

Facebook allowed Apple Inc and other device makers to have "deep" access to users' personal data without their consent, according to the Times.

The Times said Facebook allowed companies access to the data of users' friends without their explicit consent, even after it had declared it would no longer share the information with outsiders.

Archibong said the data was only shared with device makers in order to improve Facebook users' access to the information. "These partners signed agreements that prevented people’s Facebook information from being used for any other purpose than to recreate Facebook-like experiences."

Regulators and authorities in several countries have increased scrutiny of Facebook after it failed to protect the data of some 87 million users that was shared with now-defunct political data firm Cambridge Analytica.

Two Democrats on the Senate Commerce Committee, Edward Markey and Richard Blumenthal, on Monday also wrote to Zuckerberg.

"New revelations that Facebook provided access to users' personal information, including religion, political preferences, and relationship status, to dozens of mobile device manufacturers without users' explicit consent are deeply concerning," they said in a letter.

Archibong said the cases were "very different" from the use of data by third-party developers in the Cambridge row.

New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood said on Monday the "data-sharing’ partnerships with other corporations" is part of the ongoing investigation into the reported misuse of Facebook user data by Cambridge Analytica.

The New York Times report had alleged that Facebook had shared the data of its users and their friends with at least 60 phone makers including Apple, Samsung, and Microsoft

The US Senate Commerce Committee demanded that Facebook Inc's chief executive officer respond to a report that user data was shared with at least 60 device manufacturers, weeks after the social media company said it would change its practices after a political firm got access to data from millions of users. Senators John Thune, the Republican chairman, and Bill Nelson, the ranking Democrat, on Tuesday wrote to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg after the New York Times reported that manufacturers were able to access user friends’ data even if the friends denied permission to share the information with third parties. The letter asks if Facebook audited partnerships with the device manufacturers under a 2011 consent order with the Federal Trade Commission. It also asked if Zuckerberg wanted to revise his testimony before the Senate in April. Facebook said it looks forward to addressing any questions the Commerce Committee has. Facebook still has not answered hundreds of written questions submitted from members of Congress after Zuckerberg's testimony in April, according to congressional staff. The data sharing mentioned in the Times story was used over the last decade used by about 60 companies, including Amazon.com Inc, Apple, Blackberry Ltd, HTC Corp, Microsoft Corp and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, Ime Archibong, Facebook vice president of product partnerships, wrote in a blog post on June 3. The letter from Thune and Nelson seeks the names of all manufacturers that received user data. Senator Mark Warner, the vice chairman of the Intelligence Committee, asked Facebook if Chinese firms Huawei Technologies Co Ltd, ZTE Corp or Xiaomi were among the companies that received user data. Facebook did not immediately respond to the question. Chinese telecommunications companies have come under scrutiny from U.S. intelligence officials who argue they provide an opportunity for foreign espionage and threaten critical U.S. infrastructure, something the Chinese have consistently denied. The Federal Trade Commission confirmed in March that it was investigating Facebook's privacy practices. Facebook allowed Apple Inc and other device makers to have "deep" access to users' personal data without their consent, according to the Times. The Times said Facebook allowed companies access to the data of users' friends without their explicit consent, even after it had declared it would no longer share the information with outsiders. Archibong said the data was only shared with device makers in order to improve Facebook users' access to the information. "These partners signed agreements that prevented people’s Facebook information from being used for any other purpose than to recreate Facebook-like experiences." Regulators and authorities in several countries have increased scrutiny of Facebook after it failed to protect the data of some 87 million users that was shared with now-defunct political data firm Cambridge Analytica. Two Democrats on the Senate Commerce Committee, Edward Markey and Richard Blumenthal, on Monday also wrote to Zuckerberg. "New revelations that Facebook provided access to users' personal information, including religion, political preferences, and relationship status, to dozens of mobile device manufacturers without users' explicit consent are deeply concerning," they said in a letter. Archibong said the cases were "very different" from the use of data by third-party developers in the Cambridge row. New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood said on Monday the "data-sharing’ partnerships with other corporations" is part of the ongoing investigation into the reported misuse of Facebook user data by Cambridge Analytica.

US senators demand answers from Facebook after data-sharing report

Facebook has formed data-sharing partnerships with 60 device makers, including Apple and Microsoft, giving them access to information of users and even their friends, a media report has claimed, weeks after the social media faced massive backlash for improperly sharing personal data of up to 87 million people.

The New York Times yesterday revealed the partnerships, shedding new light on the social media giant's behaviour related to customer data in the wake of a scandal involving the British political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica.

Facebook, which was founded in 2004, has reached data-sharing partnerships with at least 60 device makers including Apple, Amazon, BlackBerry, Microsoft and Samsung over the last decade, starting before Facebook apps were widely available on smartphones, company officials were quoted as saying by the report.

The deals allowed Facebook to expand its reach and let device makers offer customers popular features of the social network, such as messaging, "like" buttons and address books. The agreements that Facebook entered raise "concerns about the company's privacy protections and compliance with a 2011 consent decree" with the Federal Trade Commission, the report said.

"Facebook allowed the device companies access to the data of users' friends without their explicit consent, even after declaring that it would no longer share such information with outsiders," the daily said reporting the results of its investigation.

Some device makers could retrieve personal information even from users' friends who believed they had barred any sharing, The New York Times found.

In interviews to The New York Times, Facebook however defended its data sharing agreement and asserted that these are consistent with its privacy policies, the FTC agreement and pledges to users.

"These partnerships work very differently from the way in which app developers use our platform," Ime Archibong, Facebook vice president told the daily.

Unlike developers that provide games and services to Facebook users, the device partners can use Facebook data only to provide versions of "the Facebook experience," the officials were quoted as saying.

"You might think that Facebook or the device manufacturer is trustworthy. But the problem is that as more and more data is collected on the device and if it can be accessed by apps on the device it creates serious privacy and security risks," Serge Egelman, a privacy researcher at the University of California, Berkeley, who studies the security of mobile apps, told the daily.

The report comes as Facebook has come under scrutiny for its handling of private data after it was revealed that Cambridge Analytica accessed millions of users' private information.

In April, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg had admitted making a "huge mistake" as personal data of up to 87 million users may have been improperly shared with Cambridge Analytica.&nbsp;

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&nbsp;

The deals allowed Facebook to expand its reach and let the device makers offer customers popular features of the social network, such as 'like' buttons and address books

Facebook has formed data-sharing partnerships with 60 device makers, including Apple and Microsoft, giving them access to information of users and even their friends, a media report has claimed, weeks after the social media faced massive backlash for improperly sharing personal data of up to 87 million people. The New York Times yesterday revealed the partnerships, shedding new light on the social media giant's behaviour related to customer data in the wake of a scandal involving the British political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica. Facebook, which was founded in 2004, has reached data-sharing partnerships with at least 60 device makers including Apple, Amazon, BlackBerry, Microsoft and Samsung over the last decade, starting before Facebook apps were widely available on smartphones, company officials were quoted as saying by the report. The deals allowed Facebook to expand its reach and let device makers offer customers popular features of the social network, such as messaging, "like" buttons and address books. The agreements that Facebook entered raise "concerns about the company's privacy protections and compliance with a 2011 consent decree" with the Federal Trade Commission, the report said. "Facebook allowed the device companies access to the data of users' friends without their explicit consent, even after declaring that it would no longer share such information with outsiders," the daily said reporting the results of its investigation. Some device makers could retrieve personal information even from users' friends who believed they had barred any sharing, The New York Times found. In interviews to The New York Times, Facebook however defended its data sharing agreement and asserted that these are consistent with its privacy policies, the FTC agreement and pledges to users. "These partnerships work very differently from the way in which app developers use our platform," Ime Archibong, Facebook vice president told the daily. Unlike developers that provide games and services to Facebook users, the device partners can use Facebook data only to provide versions of "the Facebook experience," the officials were quoted as saying. "You might think that Facebook or the device manufacturer is trustworthy. But the problem is that as more and more data is collected on the device and if it can be accessed by apps on the device it creates serious privacy and security risks," Serge Egelman, a privacy researcher at the University of California, Berkeley, who studies the security of mobile apps, told the daily. The report comes as Facebook has come under scrutiny for its handling of private data after it was revealed that Cambridge Analytica accessed millions of users' private information. In April, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg had admitted making a "huge mistake" as personal data of up to 87 million users may have been improperly shared with Cambridge Analytica. ×

Facebook shared user data with over 60 device makers including Apple, Samsung: Report

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-shared-user-data-with-over-60-device-makers-including-apple-samsung-report-142133">Facebook shared user data with over 60 device makers including Apple, Samsung: Report</a>

Facebook has formed data-sharing partnerships with 60 device makers, including Apple and Microsoft, giving them access to information of users and even their friends, a media report has claimed, weeks after the social media faced massive backlash for improperly sharing personal data of up to 87 million people.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/bjp-lost-bypolls-because-keshav-prasad-maurya-was-not-made-cm-up-minister-142152">BJP lost </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/bjp-lost-bypolls-because-keshav-prasad-maurya-was-not-made-cm-up-minister-142152">bypolls</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/bjp-lost-bypolls-because-keshav-prasad-maurya-was-not-made-cm-up-minister-142152"> because Keshav Prasad Maurya was not made CM: UP Minister</a>

UP Minister OP Rajbhar has said the BJP lost the recent Uttar Pradesh bypolls because Yogi Aditynath, and not Keshav Prasad Maurya, was made chief minister.&nbsp;

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/watch-good-pm-modi-doesnt-take-real-questions-says-rahul-gandhi-142113">Watch: PM Modi 'doesn't take real questions', says Rahul Gandhi</a>

In a latest dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress president Rahul Gandhi called him out saying that the interviews he gives are pre-scripted.&nbsp;

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/denied-entry-into-examination-centre-upsc-aspirant-kills-himself-142134">Denied entry into examination </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/denied-entry-into-examination-centre-upsc-aspirant-kills-himself-142134">centre</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/denied-entry-into-examination-centre-upsc-aspirant-kills-himself-142134">, UPSC aspirant kills himself</a>

Varun, a 28-year-old student from Karnataka, allegedly committed suicide in Delhi after he was denied entry to sit for the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) or civil services exam.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/keys-of-jagannath-temples-treasury-go-missing-odisha-cm-orders-judicial-probe-142148">Keys of Jagannath Temple treasury go missing, Odisha CM orders </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/keys-of-jagannath-temples-treasury-go-missing-odisha-cm-orders-judicial-probe-142148">judicial</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/keys-of-jagannath-temples-treasury-go-missing-odisha-cm-orders-judicial-probe-142148"> probe</a>

The keys of the 12th century Jagannath Temple's treasury chamber Ratna Bhandar in Odisha have reportedly gone missing.

Read the five big stories of the day here

Facebook shared user data with over 60 device makers including Apple, Samsung: Report Facebook has formed data-sharing partnerships with 60 device makers, including Apple and Microsoft, giving them access to information of users and even their friends, a media report has claimed, weeks after the social media faced massive backlash for improperly sharing personal data of up to 87 million people. BJP lost bypolls because Keshav Prasad Maurya was not made CM: UP Minister UP Minister OP Rajbhar has said the BJP lost the recent Uttar Pradesh bypolls because Yogi Aditynath, and not Keshav Prasad Maurya, was made chief minister. Watch: PM Modi 'doesn't take real questions', says Rahul Gandhi In a latest dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress president Rahul Gandhi called him out saying that the interviews he gives are pre-scripted. Denied entry into examination centre, UPSC aspirant kills himself Varun, a 28-year-old student from Karnataka, allegedly committed suicide in Delhi after he was denied entry to sit for the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) or civil services exam. Keys of Jagannath Temple treasury go missing, Odisha CM orders judicial probe The keys of the 12th century Jagannath Temple's treasury chamber Ratna Bhandar in Odisha have reportedly gone missing.

By:&nbsp;Ronald Robertson*

As the 2018 midterm elections approach in the U.S., Google's power to influence undecided voters remains overshadowed by Facebook's personal data crisis.

Facebook has "taken it on the chin" for its role in the 2016 presidential election, and organisations like the political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica and the Russian troll farm known as the Internet Research Agency have dominated headlines. Yet, despite having a troubling history and collecting more personal data through more products than Facebook, Google has somehow managed to evade the public spotlight on this one. That may be changing.

The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee recently sent Google a letter asking a series of questions about the company’s personal data protection. As one of the researchers who helped discover that search engines can substantially influence users' voting preferences, I found the last question to be the most intriguing: "Are you aware of any foreign entities seeking to influence or interfere with U.S. elections through your platforms?" If Google’s response to this question exists, it has not been made public.

Search engine influence

Since 2013, I've been involved in the design and execution of a long series of experiments that have demonstrated how search engines can influence undecided voters' candidate choices through nearly undetectable manipulations to search rankings. We labeled this powerful new form of influence the search engine manipulation effect.

The way these effect works is simple: Favoritism for a particular candidate in election-related search rankings leads to people preferring that candidate. For example, a search related to an upcoming election might return results favoring candidate A higher than results favoring candidate B. That's called partisan ranking bias. Since people tend to click on and trust highly ranked results, more people will then trust and consume the information supporting candidate A. In turn, that consumption increases their preference for candidate A.

The most important aspect of this effect, however, is that most people can't detect the partisan ranking bias – and it's virtually impossible to defend yourself from influences you can't perceive. Fortunately, in three follow-up experiments, involving 3,600 participants, we demonstrated that alerting people to partisan ranking bias can help suppress the effect – though only laws or regulations actually preventing partisan ranking could eliminate the effect entirely.

Why focus on Google?

Google handles more than 60 percent of internet search activity in the U.S., and nearly 90 percent worldwide. Every year, this translates to trillions of queries related to people's private thoughts, concerns and questions.

With respect to news, search engines are a bigger source than social media. Although an often cited 2016 Pew study found that a majority, 62 percent, of U.S. adults got news on social media, the devil is in the details. If you unpack that statistic, you'll find that 18 percent do so "hardly ever." Added to the 38 percent of Americans who "never" got news on social media, the same study suggests that social media is a negligible source of news for 56 percent of Americans, also a majority.

Think about it: When you need to fact-check something or learn more about a topic, what do you do? You Google it. This fact is supported by a recent international survey that found that 74 percent of participants reported using search engines to fact-check information they found on social media. The same survey found that 68 percent reported that the information they found while searching was "important to influencing their decisions about voting."

What does Google think?

Google’s executives rarely make public responses to critiques of its search system. But in 2015, my colleague Robert Epstein published an article in Politico – entitled "How Google Could Rig the 2016 Election" – and that did the trick. Google's head of search at the time, Amit Singhal, responded with his own article, calling Epstein a conspiracy theorist, stating that "there is absolutely no truth to Epstein's hypothesis that Google could work secretly to influence election outcomes" and that "Google has never ever re-ranked search results on any topic (including elections) to manipulate user sentiment."

Singhal's first claim is hard to believe, unless you dismiss our research, our replication, and the independent research built on our findings. Search engines do have the capacity to shift people's opinions, including who to vote for.

His second claim, that Google "never ever re-ranked search results," also doesn’t quite hold up: The EU recently fined the company US$2.7 billion for ranking its own services higher in search results than its competitors.

Defending democracy

Another one of the Judiciary Committee’s questions to Google also struck a chord with me: "How do you monitor the ability of foreign entities to influence and interfere with U.S. elections?"

This question struck me because I've been developing systems for exactly this purpose – preserving search rankings and analysing them for systematic differences – for several years. In the course of this work, however, I've come to believe that freeing the democratic process from technologically enabled influences is virtually impossible without the cooperation of modern tech giants.

Facebook is now offering to collaborate with academic researchers who can measure and perhaps lessen or prevent undue influence on elections, and Twitter is doing something similar. Related efforts are also bringing transparency to other platforms like YouTube and Reddit. When will Google get on board?

At an upcoming conference, I will present the latest system I've been designing with Christo Wilson, a leading scientist in the field of algorithm auditing, for monitoring search rankings for partisan bias. With a little assistance from Google, no more than Facebook is offering, accurately monitoring or preventing search engine influence in the 2018 elections is actually a feasible goal. Without the company's help, things look bleak.

Although Google is an advertising business, its core is composed of creative and intelligent individuals who care deeply about the impact their work has on the world. This is evidenced by the recent letter signed by more than 3,100 Google employees protesting the use of their work in warfare technology. Nearly a dozen Google workers went so far as to resign in protest.

Perhaps the day is fast approaching when Google will step up, as Facebook, Twitter and Reddit have, to help defend democracy from the new world of computational propaganda. Perhaps there is already a letter circulating internally and gathering signatures. With state and federal primary elections already underway, let's hope so.

*Ronald Robertson is a Ph.D. Student in Network Science, Northeastern University

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

(This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original <a href="https://theconversation.com/when-will-google-defend-democracy-96838">article</a>.)

As the 2018 midterm elections approach in the U.S., Google's power to influence undecided voters remains overshadowed by Facebook's personal data crisis

By: Ronald Robertson* As the 2018 midterm elections approach in the U.S., Google's power to influence undecided voters remains overshadowed by Facebook's personal data crisis. Facebook has "taken it on the chin" for its role in the 2016 presidential election, and organisations like the political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica and the Russian troll farm known as the Internet Research Agency have dominated headlines. Yet, despite having a troubling history and collecting more personal data through more products than Facebook, Google has somehow managed to evade the public spotlight on this one. That may be changing. The U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee recently sent Google a letter asking a series of questions about the company’s personal data protection. As one of the researchers who helped discover that search engines can substantially influence users' voting preferences, I found the last question to be the most intriguing: "Are you aware of any foreign entities seeking to influence or interfere with U.S. elections through your platforms?" If Google’s response to this question exists, it has not been made public. Search engine influence Since 2013, I've been involved in the design and execution of a long series of experiments that have demonstrated how search engines can influence undecided voters' candidate choices through nearly undetectable manipulations to search rankings. We labeled this powerful new form of influence the search engine manipulation effect. The way these effect works is simple: Favoritism for a particular candidate in election-related search rankings leads to people preferring that candidate. For example, a search related to an upcoming election might return results favoring candidate A higher than results favoring candidate B. That's called partisan ranking bias. Since people tend to click on and trust highly ranked results, more people will then trust and consume the information supporting candidate A. In turn, that consumption increases their preference for candidate A. The most important aspect of this effect, however, is that most people can't detect the partisan ranking bias – and it's virtually impossible to defend yourself from influences you can't perceive. Fortunately, in three follow-up experiments, involving 3,600 participants, we demonstrated that alerting people to partisan ranking bias can help suppress the effect – though only laws or regulations actually preventing partisan ranking could eliminate the effect entirely. Why focus on Google? Google handles more than 60 percent of internet search activity in the U.S., and nearly 90 percent worldwide. Every year, this translates to trillions of queries related to people's private thoughts, concerns and questions. With respect to news, search engines are a bigger source than social media. Although an often cited 2016 Pew study found that a majority, 62 percent, of U.S. adults got news on social media, the devil is in the details. If you unpack that statistic, you'll find that 18 percent do so "hardly ever." Added to the 38 percent of Americans who "never" got news on social media, the same study suggests that social media is a negligible source of news for 56 percent of Americans, also a majority. Think about it: When you need to fact-check something or learn more about a topic, what do you do? You Google it. This fact is supported by a recent international survey that found that 74 percent of participants reported using search engines to fact-check information they found on social media. The same survey found that 68 percent reported that the information they found while searching was "important to influencing their decisions about voting." What does Google think? Google’s executives rarely make public responses to critiques of its search system. But in 2015, my colleague Robert Epstein published an article in Politico – entitled "How Google Could Rig the 2016 Election" – and that did the trick. Google's head of search at the time, Amit Singhal, responded with his own article, calling Epstein a conspiracy theorist, stating that "there is absolutely no truth to Epstein's hypothesis that Google could work secretly to influence election outcomes" and that "Google has never ever re-ranked search results on any topic (including elections) to manipulate user sentiment." Singhal's first claim is hard to believe, unless you dismiss our research, our replication, and the independent research built on our findings. Search engines do have the capacity to shift people's opinions, including who to vote for. His second claim, that Google "never ever re-ranked search results," also doesn’t quite hold up: The EU recently fined the company US$2.7 billion for ranking its own services higher in search results than its competitors. Defending democracy Another one of the Judiciary Committee’s questions to Google also struck a chord with me: "How do you monitor the ability of foreign entities to influence and interfere with U.S. elections?" This question struck me because I've been developing systems for exactly this purpose – preserving search rankings and analysing them for systematic differences – for several years. In the course of this work, however, I've come to believe that freeing the democratic process from technologically enabled influences is virtually impossible without the cooperation of modern tech giants. Facebook is now offering to collaborate with academic researchers who can measure and perhaps lessen or prevent undue influence on elections, and Twitter is doing something similar. Related efforts are also bringing transparency to other platforms like YouTube and Reddit. When will Google get on board? At an upcoming conference, I will present the latest system I've been designing with Christo Wilson, a leading scientist in the field of algorithm auditing, for monitoring search rankings for partisan bias. With a little assistance from Google, no more than Facebook is offering, accurately monitoring or preventing search engine influence in the 2018 elections is actually a feasible goal. Without the company's help, things look bleak. Although Google is an advertising business, its core is composed of creative and intelligent individuals who care deeply about the impact their work has on the world. This is evidenced by the recent letter signed by more than 3,100 Google employees protesting the use of their work in warfare technology. Nearly a dozen Google workers went so far as to resign in protest. Perhaps the day is fast approaching when Google will step up, as Facebook, Twitter and Reddit have, to help defend democracy from the new world of computational propaganda. Perhaps there is already a letter circulating internally and gathering signatures. With state and federal primary elections already underway, let's hope so. *Ronald Robertson is a Ph.D. Student in Network Science, Northeastern University (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL) (This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.)

Opinion: When will Google defend democracy?

The Papua New Guinea government may temporarily ban social media giant Facebook in order to carry out a research to understand the advantages and disadvantages of the use of Facebook and vulnerabilities linked to personal data use and cybercrime.&nbsp

The information gathered from the study will then be used to curb the fake profile and fake news floating on the site.

Communications Minister Sam Basil has&nbspsuggested banning Facebook for one month which will give the government time to gather information on fake accounts and users who uploads pornography and defamatory information in order to remove it from the platform.

He also proposed the idea to replace Facebook with a locally developed social media site.&nbsp

"This will allow genuine people with real identities to use the social network responsibly," &nbspnews agency quoted Basil as saying.

"If there need be then we can gather our local applications developers to create a site that is more conducive for Papua New Guineans to communicate within the country and abroad as well," Basil added,

However, no time has been fixed at for the potential ban on Facebook. But reports say that the ban might come into effect during the time when Papua New Guinea is hosting the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation&nbsp(APEC) summit later this year. The summit is expected to be attended by the United States president Donald Trump.

Mark Zuckerberg owned Facebook is under fire from past few months after a whistleblower revealed that UK based data mining firm Cambridge Analytica gathered data from illegal measures.

It has faced a lot of criticism after it was revealed that over 80 million users' information was compromised during the Cambridge Analytica row.

AFP reported a spokesperson of Facebook is saying that it has reached the Papua New Guinea authorities and is addressing the concerns.

The decision of temporarily banning the Facebook has however been ridiculed by Papua New Guinea media as the time of the ban may coincide with APEC summit.

PNG Institute of National Affairs executive director Paul Barker was quoted as saying by AFP, "The APEC meeting is all about promoting the digital era to assist business, develop economies, and improve citizen welfare in member countries."&nbsp

Media has said that it restricts the freedom of speech in the country as the Platform is widely used to discuss politics.

(With inputs from AFP)

A study will be conducted during this period to gather from the study will then be used to curb the fake profiles and fake news floating on the site

The Papua New Guinea government may temporarily ban social media giant Facebook in order to carry out a research to understand the advantages and disadvantages of the use of Facebook and vulnerabilities linked to personal data use and cybercrime. The information gathered from the study will then be used to curb the fake profile and fake news floating on the site. Communications Minister Sam Basil has&nbspsuggested banning Facebook for one month which will give the government time to gather information on fake accounts and users who uploads pornography and defamatory information in order to remove it from the platform. He also proposed the idea to replace Facebook with a locally developed social media site. "This will allow genuine people with real identities to use the social network responsibly," &nbspnews agency quoted Basil as saying. "If there need be then we can gather our local applications developers to create a site that is more conducive for Papua New Guineans to communicate within the country and abroad as well," Basil added, However, no time has been fixed at for the potential ban on Facebook. But reports say that the ban might come into effect during the time when Papua New Guinea is hosting the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit later this year. The summit is expected to be attended by the United States president Donald Trump. Mark Zuckerberg owned Facebook is under fire from past few months after a whistleblower revealed that UK based data mining firm Cambridge Analytica gathered data from illegal measures. It has faced a lot of criticism after it was revealed that over 80 million users' information was compromised during the Cambridge Analytica row. AFP reported a spokesperson of Facebook is saying that it has reached the Papua New Guinea authorities and is addressing the concerns. The decision of temporarily banning the Facebook has however been ridiculed by Papua New Guinea media as the time of the ban may coincide with APEC summit. PNG Institute of National Affairs executive director Paul Barker was quoted as saying by AFP, "The APEC meeting is all about promoting the digital era to assist business, develop economies, and improve citizen welfare in member countries." Media has said that it restricts the freedom of speech in the country as the Platform is widely used to discuss politics. (With inputs from AFP)

Papua New Guinea may temporarily ban Facebook to curb fake profiles

Who knew that a father-daughter bond could be put to scrutiny and shamed by people. It so happened that Bollywood actor Aamir Khan posted a few pictures of his family celebrating his relative's 60th birthday and one of them was with his 21-year-old&nbsp;daughter Ira, playing in the park.&nbsp;

Soon after, obscene comments started pouring in with people calling the scene "unacceptable" while some called it a "porn movie."

People also attacked the actor for sharing pictures&nbsp;during the month of Ramzan.

One Facebook, one user said that people who don’t respect their religion would face the wrath of God.

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People also attacked the actor for sharing pictures during the month of Ramzan

Who knew that a father-daughter bond could be put to scrutiny and shamed by people. It so happened that Bollywood actor Aamir Khan posted a few pictures of his family celebrating his relative's 60th birthday and one of them was with his 21-year-old daughter Ira, playing in the park. Soon after, obscene comments started pouring in with people calling the scene "unacceptable" while some called it a "porn movie." People also attacked the actor for sharing pictures during the month of Ramzan. One Facebook, one user said that people who don’t respect their religion would face the wrath of God. Wrong number ?? pic.twitter.com/ITaqwhBhdE — Finger of India (@IndiaFinger) May 30, 2018 × × ×

Trolls attack Aamir Khan for playing with daughter, posting food pictures during Ramzan

Spain's far-left party Podemos said Sunday its leader has won a confidence vote called after an outcry over his purchase of a luxury home.

Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias along with his partner who is Podemos parliamentary spokeswoman Irene Montero won 68.4 percent of the nearly 190,000 votes cast.

Nearly a third, 31.6 percent, voted against the couple remaining in their roles, Pablo Echenique, the party's secretary of organisation, said in a Facebook post.

The party's nearly 500,000 members were eligible to vote online from Tuesday until Sunday as to whether the couple should stay on in their roles.

The couple, who are expecting twins, called the vote earlier this month after they were accused of hypocrisy for buying a house for over 600,000 euros ($700,000) with a swimming pool and guest house.

The purchase caused unease among the rank and file of Podemos, which was formed in 2014 to represent "the people" against "the caste" -- as it called the country's political and business elites.

In the past Iglesias had made much of the fact that he lived in a modest apartment in Vallecas, a working-class Madrid neighbourhood, that belonged to his great-aunt and bought his clothes in supermarkets.

He had also criticised politicians who "live in villas" and "do not know how much a coffee costs", comments which have come back to haunt him.

Critics recall that in 2012 he criticised conservative Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's then economy minister Luis de Guindos for buying a luxury home.

"Would you hand over the nation's economic policy to someone who spends 600,000 euros on a luxury penthouse?" Iglesias wrote.

Analysts said that while the couple would likely survive the confidence vote, the scandal would taint the party's image that its leaders are ordinary Spaniards who understood the plight of workers and would cost it votes.

Podemos has become one of Spain's four main political parties after winning around a fifth of the vote in the 2016 general election.

In opinion polls, it now matches and sometimes overtakes Spain's traditional left-wing party, the Socialists (PSOE). 
&nbsp

Spain's far-left party Podemos said Sunday its leader has won a confidence vote called after an outcry over his purchase of a luxury home

Spain's far-left party Podemos said Sunday its leader has won a confidence vote called after an outcry over his purchase of a luxury home. Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias along with his partner who is Podemos parliamentary spokeswoman Irene Montero won 68.4 percent of the nearly 190,000 votes cast. Nearly a third, 31.6 percent, voted against the couple remaining in their roles, Pablo Echenique, the party's secretary of organisation, said in a Facebook post. The party's nearly 500,000 members were eligible to vote online from Tuesday until Sunday as to whether the couple should stay on in their roles. The couple, who are expecting twins, called the vote earlier this month after they were accused of hypocrisy for buying a house for over 600,000 euros ($700,000) with a swimming pool and guest house. The purchase caused unease among the rank and file of Podemos, which was formed in 2014 to represent "the people" against "the caste" -- as it called the country's political and business elites. In the past Iglesias had made much of the fact that he lived in a modest apartment in Vallecas, a working-class Madrid neighbourhood, that belonged to his great-aunt and bought his clothes in supermarkets. He had also criticised politicians who "live in villas" and "do not know how much a coffee costs", comments which have come back to haunt him. Critics recall that in 2012 he criticised conservative Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's then economy minister Luis de Guindos for buying a luxury home. "Would you hand over the nation's economic policy to someone who spends 600,000 euros on a luxury penthouse?" Iglesias wrote. Analysts said that while the couple would likely survive the confidence vote, the scandal would taint the party's image that its leaders are ordinary Spaniards who understood the plight of workers and would cost it votes. Podemos has become one of Spain's four main political parties after winning around a fifth of the vote in the 2016 general election. In opinion polls, it now matches and sometimes overtakes Spain's traditional left-wing party, the Socialists (PSOE).

Spain's Podemos leader wins confidence vote over luxury home

A tide of molten rock turned a Hawaii street into a volcanic wasteland on Friday as the number of homes destroyed by the erupting Kilauea volcano soared and authorities told residents to flee a surge of lava heading towards them.

The destructive fury of the erupting Kilauea volcano was unleashed on the Big Island's Leilani Estates housing development, with the number of homes and other structures destroyed leaping to 82 from a previous count of 50, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.&nbsp

Some 2,200 acres (890 hectares) of land have been torched by lava since May 3, in what is likely to be the most destructive eruption of Kilauea in more than a century, according to the County of Hawaii.&nbsp

"There were eight houses taken on this road in 12 hours," Ikaika Marzo said in a Facebook video as he stood on Kaupuli street and showed a black, glass-like lava field where his cousin`s house previously stood.

Magma spewed from 100-foot-high (30-meter-high) cinder cones and formed elevated ponds of molten rock that were expected to soon overflow and stream into the next rows of homes - Kahukai Street and Mohala Street. Firefighters went door to door evacuating residents before the lava arrived.

"It's this tide of lava that rises up and overflows itself on the edges and keeps rising and progressing forward," US&nbspGeological Survey geologist Wendy Stovall told journalists on a conference call.

Around 37 structures are already "lava locked," meaning homes are inaccessible, and people who do not evacuate may be trapped by lava flows.

"Any residents remaining in the current affected areas should evacuate now," Hawaii County Civil Defense said in an alert.

Magma is draining underground from a sinking lava lake at Kilauea`s 4,091-foot (1,247-meter) summit before flowing around 25 miles (40 km) east and bursting from giant cracks, with two flows reaching the ocean just over three miles (5 km) distant.

Stovall declined to comment on lava volume being emitted. Marzo said he was told by a USGS geologist there was much more to come from Kilauea.

"What has been coming out is just a small fraction of what was in the volcano," he said.

Though lava destruction from the volcano is confined to a roughly 10-square-mile (26-sq-km) area, the eruption is hurting the island`s tourist-driven economy as potential visitors fear ashfall or volcanic smog belching from Kilauea's summit.

Visitor numbers to the Connecticut-sized island so far in 2018 are "trending a little bit lower" than 2017, with the cancellation of some port visits by cruise ships expected to have a $3 million impact, Ross Birch, head of the island`s tourism board said on a conference call.

A tide of molten rock turned a Hawaii street into a volcanic wasteland on Friday as the number of homes destroyed by the erupting Kilauea volcano soared and authorities told residents to flee a surge of lava heading towards them

A tide of molten rock turned a Hawaii street into a volcanic wasteland on Friday as the number of homes destroyed by the erupting Kilauea volcano soared and authorities told residents to flee a surge of lava heading towards them. The destructive fury of the erupting Kilauea volcano was unleashed on the Big Island's Leilani Estates housing development, with the number of homes and other structures destroyed leaping to 82 from a previous count of 50, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Some 2,200 acres (890 hectares) of land have been torched by lava since May 3, in what is likely to be the most destructive eruption of Kilauea in more than a century, according to the County of Hawaii. "There were eight houses taken on this road in 12 hours," Ikaika Marzo said in a Facebook video as he stood on Kaupuli street and showed a black, glass-like lava field where his cousin`s house previously stood. Magma spewed from 100-foot-high (30-meter-high) cinder cones and formed elevated ponds of molten rock that were expected to soon overflow and stream into the next rows of homes - Kahukai Street and Mohala Street. Firefighters went door to door evacuating residents before the lava arrived. "It's this tide of lava that rises up and overflows itself on the edges and keeps rising and progressing forward," US&nbspGeological Survey geologist Wendy Stovall told journalists on a conference call. Around 37 structures are already "lava locked," meaning homes are inaccessible, and people who do not evacuate may be trapped by lava flows. "Any residents remaining in the current affected areas should evacuate now," Hawaii County Civil Defense said in an alert. Magma is draining underground from a sinking lava lake at Kilauea`s 4,091-foot (1,247-meter) summit before flowing around 25 miles (40 km) east and bursting from giant cracks, with two flows reaching the ocean just over three miles (5 km) distant. Stovall declined to comment on lava volume being emitted. Marzo said he was told by a USGS geologist there was much more to come from Kilauea. "What has been coming out is just a small fraction of what was in the volcano," he said. Though lava destruction from the volcano is confined to a roughly 10-square-mile (26-sq-km) area, the eruption is hurting the island`s tourist-driven economy as potential visitors fear ashfall or volcanic smog belching from Kilauea's summit. Visitor numbers to the Connecticut-sized island so far in 2018 are "trending a little bit lower" than 2017, with the cancellation of some port visits by cruise ships expected to have a $3 million impact, Ross Birch, head of the island`s tourism board said on a conference call.

Hawaii street swallowed by 'lava tide' as many more homes burn

Facebook's rather questionable proposal to combat revenge porn which was first introduced in Australia in November will now move to the US, Canada, and the UK, reports said.&nbsp;

The request: asking users to send their intimate pictures to Facebook in order for it to register and block them from ever being posted by other users.&nbsp;

The program is called the Non-Consensual Intimate Image Pilot, and as described by Facebook, which is an “emergency option” for people who are worried their images might be shared in the future.

The idea received a lot of flak in Australia. No further information was revealed on how the trial went in the country.&nbsp;

In the UK, if you suspect that an image of you could be leaked on the social media website, Facebook says you should contact its partners for the trial - Revenge Porn Helpline.&nbsp;

The staff there will then get in touch with Facebook and you'll get sent a link to upload the photo. The idea is that Facebook can then digitally fingerprint the submitted image and block its potential future spread.

So, who will the photos be sent to on Facebook? Facebook's Global Head of Safety Antigone Davis told local media that the photos will only be viewed by a small group comprising of five specially trained reviewers who will give the photo a unique digital fingerprint which will be stored on the database.&nbsp;

If anyone in future tries to upload an intimate picture of a person, the system will recognise the code and block it from appearing on Facebook, messenger, and Instagram.&nbsp;

However, it's unclear if this idea would be a hit. The problem is not the technology but&nbsp;what's bizarre is Facebook's fuzzy proposal and the fact that anyone submitting their photo to Facebook would still be vulnerable to potentially having that image be exploited.

One in eight American social media users has been a target of non-consensual pornography, according to a 2017 study conducted by the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative.

&nbsp;

The program is called the Non-Consensual Intimate Image Pilot, and as described by Facebook, which is an 'emergency option' for people who are worried their images might be shared in the future.

Facebook's rather questionable proposal to combat revenge porn which was first introduced in Australia in November will now move to the US, Canada, and the UK, reports said. The request: asking users to send their intimate pictures to Facebook in order for it to register and block them from ever being posted by other users. The program is called the Non-Consensual Intimate Image Pilot, and as described by Facebook, which is an “emergency option” for people who are worried their images might be shared in the future. The idea received a lot of flak in Australia. No further information was revealed on how the trial went in the country. In the UK, if you suspect that an image of you could be leaked on the social media website, Facebook says you should contact its partners for the trial - Revenge Porn Helpline. The staff there will then get in touch with Facebook and you'll get sent a link to upload the photo. The idea is that Facebook can then digitally fingerprint the submitted image and block its potential future spread. So, who will the photos be sent to on Facebook? Facebook's Global Head of Safety Antigone Davis told local media that the photos will only be viewed by a small group comprising of five specially trained reviewers who will give the photo a unique digital fingerprint which will be stored on the database. If anyone in future tries to upload an intimate picture of a person, the system will recognise the code and block it from appearing on Facebook, messenger, and Instagram. However, it's unclear if this idea would be a hit. The problem is not the technology but what's bizarre is Facebook's fuzzy proposal and the fact that anyone submitting their photo to Facebook would still be vulnerable to potentially having that image be exploited. One in eight American social media users has been a target of non-consensual pornography, according to a 2017 study conducted by the Cyber Civil Rights Initiative.

Facebook is now asking users to send their intimate pictures to combat revenge porn

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/kumaraswamy-to-take-oath-as-karnataka-chief-minister-today-139001">HD Kumaraswamy to be sworn in as Karnataka Chief Minister today, floor test tomorrow</a>

Alongside Kumaraswamy, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) President G. Parameshwara will take oath as the Deputy Chief Minister. &nbsp;

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/tamil-nadu-at-least-11-killed-in-clashes-with-police-over-protests-against-sterlite-plant-139005">Tamil Nadu: At least 11 killed in clashes with police over protests against Sterlite copper plant</a>

As many as 11 people have been reported dead in clashes between locals and the police in Tamil Nadu's Tuticorin. Chaos broke out as locals continued to protest Sterlite’s industrial plant for the 100th consecutive day on Tuesday.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/rohingya-militants-killed-hindu-villagers-in-myanmar-violence-amnesty-international-139009">Rohingya militants killed Hindu villagers in Myanmar: Amnesty International</a>

Campaign group Amnesty International said on Tuesday it had gathered evidence that insurgents from a Rohingya Muslim armed group killed scores of Hindu civilians in August last year, amid a surge in violence in western Myanmar.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/venezuelas-maduro-expels-us-diplomats-rejects-sanctions-138999">Venezuela's Maduro expels US diplomats, rejects sanctions</a>

Venezuela ordered the expulsion of the top two US diplomats in the country Tuesday, charging it was the victim of a "political and financial lynching" after Washington tightened sanctions over Nicolas Maduro's re-election.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/facebook-face-off-eu-gets-little-news-from-zuckerberg-about-social-networks-data-policies--139003">Facebook face-off: EU gets little news from Zuckerberg about social network's data policies</a>

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg sailed through a grilling from EU lawmakers about the social network's data policies as lengthy questions left the 34-year-old American little time to answer.

HD Kumaraswamy to be sworn in as Karnataka Chief Minister today, floor test tomorrow Alongside Kumaraswamy, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) President G. Parameshwara will take oath as the Deputy Chief Minister. Tamil Nadu: At least 11 killed in clashes with police over protests against Sterlite copper plant As many as 11 people have been reported dead in clashes between locals and the police in Tamil Nadu's Tuticorin. Chaos broke out as locals continued to protest Sterlite’s industrial plant for the 100th consecutive day on Tuesday. Rohingya militants killed Hindu villagers in Myanmar: Amnesty International Campaign group Amnesty International said on Tuesday it had gathered evidence that insurgents from a Rohingya Muslim armed group killed scores of Hindu civilians in August last year, amid a surge in violence in western Myanmar. Venezuela's Maduro expels US diplomats, rejects sanctions Venezuela ordered the expulsion of the top two US diplomats in the country Tuesday, charging it was the victim of a "political and financial lynching" after Washington tightened sanctions over Nicolas Maduro's re-election. Facebook face-off: EU gets little news from Zuckerberg about social network's data policies Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg sailed through a grilling from EU lawmakers about the social network's data policies as lengthy questions left the 34-year-old American little time to answer.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg sailed through a grilling from EU lawmakers about the social network's data policies as lengthy questions left the 34-year-old American little time to answer.

Betraying little emotion, Zuckerberg apologised to leaders of the European Parliament in Brussels for a massive data leak, in his latest attempt to draw a line under the damaging scandal.

However, he avoided answering numerous specific questions, notably around opt-outs from targeted advertising, the sharing of data between Facebook and its messaging service WhatsApp, as well as Facebook's collection of data on non-users.

He spoke for over half an hour in total, mostly repeating assurances and descriptions of Facebook plans that he detailed to U.S. lawmakers during 10 hours of hearings in Washington last month. Though some questions were sharp, there was no chance for the Europeans to follow up if they felt the answers fell short.

Investment analysts heard little new and Facebook's share price showed no reaction to the event, holding at the level to which it has recovered after taking a hit on the scandal.

"I asked you six 'yes or no' questions I got not a single answer," said Philippe Lamberts of the Greens, one of 12 party leaders and lead legislators whose questions to Zuckerberg took up nearly half of a hearing - broadcast live after complaints about an original plan for a closed-door meeting.

Zuckerberg had agreed to meet the lawmakers to answer questions about how political consultancy Cambridge Analytica improperly got hold of the personal data of 87 million Facebook users, including up to 2.7 million in the EU.

"SORRY" AND SOUVENIRS

He used an initial 10-minute address to apologise. "That was a mistake and I am sorry for it," he said. Not enough was done to prevent the breach, he added, promising the company was now better prepared and was working on further improvements.

The dozen MEPs then asked their questions, ranging from the German conservative leader asking Zuckerberg why his giant firm should not be broken up as a monopoly to complaints from Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage, and an ally of French nationalist Marine Le Pen, that Facebook was now biased against right-wing parties.

That left barely 10 more minutes of the allotted time for replies -- though Zuckerberg spoke for a further quarter hour before the Italian speaker of the legislature, President Antonio Tajani, brought a somewhat disorderly halt to proceedings.

Over shouted complaints and repeated questions, the Facebook CEO and his adviser promised follow-up written answers at least one lawmaker, Swedish liberal Cecilia Wikstrom, also found time to pose for a souvenir photo with the youthful tech supremo, who uncharacteristically wore a dark suit and tie for the occasion.

British Conservative Syed Kamall complained the hearing was a "get-out-of-jail-free card" for Zuckerberg and said Facebook's reluctance to detail some of its workings left regulators trying to "cure a disease without knowing what the illness is".

The MEPs also faced criticism. Dominique Deckmyn of Belgian paper De Standaard tweeted: "First, they used up all their time speaking to make themselves look good, then complained loudly that Zuckerberg had no time left to answer."

In his opening remarks, Zuckerberg said it had "become clear over the last couple of years that we haven't done enough to prevent the tools we've built from being used for harm as well."

"Whether it's fake news, foreign interference in elections or developers misusing people’s information, we didn’t take a broad enough view of our responsibilities."

ECHO OF WASHINGTON

His comments echoed an apology last month to U.S. lawmakers. But questions remain over how Facebook let the leak happen and whether it is doing enough to prevent a recurrence.

Zuckerberg's appearance in Brussels came three days before tough new EU rules on data protection take effect. Companies will be subject to fines of up to 4 percent of global turnover for breaching them.

Zuckerberg said Facebook expected to be compliant with the EU rules, called the General Data Protection Regulation, when they come into force on Friday, stressing a commitment to Europe where Facebook will employ 10,000 people by the end of the year.

He avoided giving details about how non-Facebook users could stop the company from collecting their data, abruptly changing the subject to the company's relationship with third-party apps.

Last month, Facebook said it had no plans to build a tool to allow non-users to find out what the company knows about them, something that U.S. lawmakers had asked about.

Since the Cambridge Analytica scandal, Facebook has suspended 200 apps from its platforms as it investigates third-party apps that have access to large quantities of user data. Zuckerberg said he expected more apps to be penalised.

Cambridge Analytica and its British parent, SCL Elections Ltd, have declared bankruptcy and closed down.

Zuckerberg said investments in security would significantly impact Facebook's profitability, but "keeping people safe will always be more important than maximising our profits".

Some European officials want a tougher line on big technology firms, however.

Facebook's compliance with the new EU data rules will be closely watched, as will its efforts to tackle the spread of fake news ahead of European Parliament elections next year.

"Some sort of regulation is important and inevitable," Zuckerberg said, but he echoed calls in the United States that innovation should not be stifled.

Zuckerberg will go on to meet French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday but has so far declined to appear in front of British lawmakers.

&nbsp

However, Zuckerberg avoided answering numerous specific questions, notably around opt-outs from targeted advertising, the sharing of data between Facebook and its messaging service WhatsApp, as well as Facebook's collection of data on non-users

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg sailed through a grilling from EU lawmakers about the social network's data policies as lengthy questions left the 34-year-old American little time to answer. Betraying little emotion, Zuckerberg apologised to leaders of the European Parliament in Brussels for a massive data leak, in his latest attempt to draw a line under the damaging scandal. However, he avoided answering numerous specific questions, notably around opt-outs from targeted advertising, the sharing of data between Facebook and its messaging service WhatsApp, as well as Facebook's collection of data on non-users. He spoke for over half an hour in total, mostly repeating assurances and descriptions of Facebook plans that he detailed to U.S. lawmakers during 10 hours of hearings in Washington last month. Though some questions were sharp, there was no chance for the Europeans to follow up if they felt the answers fell short. Investment analysts heard little new and Facebook's share price showed no reaction to the event, holding at the level to which it has recovered after taking a hit on the scandal. "I asked you six 'yes or no' questions I got not a single answer," said Philippe Lamberts of the Greens, one of 12 party leaders and lead legislators whose questions to Zuckerberg took up nearly half of a hearing - broadcast live after complaints about an original plan for a closed-door meeting. Zuckerberg had agreed to meet the lawmakers to answer questions about how political consultancy Cambridge Analytica improperly got hold of the personal data of 87 million Facebook users, including up to 2.7 million in the EU. "SORRY" AND SOUVENIRS He used an initial 10-minute address to apologise. "That was a mistake and I am sorry for it," he said. Not enough was done to prevent the breach, he added, promising the company was now better prepared and was working on further improvements. The dozen MEPs then asked their questions, ranging from the German conservative leader asking Zuckerberg why his giant firm should not be broken up as a monopoly to complaints from Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage, and an ally of French nationalist Marine Le Pen, that Facebook was now biased against right-wing parties. That left barely 10 more minutes of the allotted time for replies -- though Zuckerberg spoke for a further quarter hour before the Italian speaker of the legislature, President Antonio Tajani, brought a somewhat disorderly halt to proceedings. Over shouted complaints and repeated questions, the Facebook CEO and his adviser promised follow-up written answers at least one lawmaker, Swedish liberal Cecilia Wikstrom, also found time to pose for a souvenir photo with the youthful tech supremo, who uncharacteristically wore a dark suit and tie for the occasion. British Conservative Syed Kamall complained the hearing was a "get-out-of-jail-free card" for Zuckerberg and said Facebook's reluctance to detail some of its workings left regulators trying to "cure a disease without knowing what the illness is". The MEPs also faced criticism. Dominique Deckmyn of Belgian paper De Standaard tweeted: "First, they used up all their time speaking to make themselves look good, then complained loudly that Zuckerberg had no time left to answer." In his opening remarks, Zuckerberg said it had "become clear over the last couple of years that we haven't done enough to prevent the tools we've built from being used for harm as well." "Whether it's fake news, foreign interference in elections or developers misusing people’s information, we didn’t take a broad enough view of our responsibilities." ECHO OF WASHINGTON His comments echoed an apology last month to U.S. lawmakers. But questions remain over how Facebook let the leak happen and whether it is doing enough to prevent a recurrence. Zuckerberg's appearance in Brussels came three days before tough new EU rules on data protection take effect. Companies will be subject to fines of up to 4 percent of global turnover for breaching them. Zuckerberg said Facebook expected to be compliant with the EU rules, called the General Data Protection Regulation, when they come into force on Friday, stressing a commitment to Europe where Facebook will employ 10,000 people by the end of the year. He avoided giving details about how non-Facebook users could stop the company from collecting their data, abruptly changing the subject to the company's relationship with third-party apps. Last month, Facebook said it had no plans to build a tool to allow non-users to find out what the company knows about them, something that U.S. lawmakers had asked about. Since the Cambridge Analytica scandal, Facebook has suspended 200 apps from its platforms as it investigates third-party apps that have access to large quantities of user data. Zuckerberg said he expected more apps to be penalised. Cambridge Analytica and its British parent, SCL Elections Ltd, have declared bankruptcy and closed down. Zuckerberg said investments in security would significantly impact Facebook's profitability, but "keeping people safe will always be more important than maximising our profits". Some European officials want a tougher line on big technology firms, however. Facebook's compliance with the new EU data rules will be closely watched, as will its efforts to tackle the spread of fake news ahead of European Parliament elections next year. "Some sort of regulation is important and inevitable," Zuckerberg said, but he echoed calls in the United States that innovation should not be stifled. Zuckerberg will go on to meet French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday but has so far declined to appear in front of British lawmakers.

Facebook face-off: EU gets little news from Zuckerberg about social network's data policies

Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg&nbsp;appeared in front of UK lawmakers in&nbsp;European Parliament&nbsp;to address data breach by Cambridge Analytica today.

While conceding that the social network hadn't done enough to stop data privacy, Zuckerberg&nbsp;said he was "sorry" for mistakes made by Facebook for use of personal data.

In his opening remarks, Zuckerberg&nbsp;said it had "become clear over the last couple of years that we haven't done enough to prevent the tools we've built from being used for harm as well."

"Whether it's fake news, foreign interference in elections or developers misusing people’s information, we didn’t take a broad enough view of our responsibilities. That was a mistake, and I’m sorry."

The Facebook data breach had hit 2.7 million European Union(EU) citizens.

"We are using new technology to prevent fake news," Zukerberg told UK lawmakers, adding,"keeping people safe is our priority."

Zuckerberg had appeared before the US Senate Intelligence Committee on data breach last month.

Zuckerberg&nbsp;told the lawmakers that Apps that measure data will be banned.

"We are working with governments to prevent poll meddling," he said. "I believe deeply in what we're doing. And when we address these challenges, I know we'll look back and view helping people connect and giving more people a voice as a positive force here in Europe and around the world," he added.

The EU has put new rules on data protection in place under which companies will be subjected to fines of up to 4 per cent of global turnover for breaching them.

Zuckerberg&nbsp;will go on to meet French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday.

Zuckerberg had appeared before the US Senate Intelligence Committee about data breach.

Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg appeared in front of UK lawmakers in European Parliament to address data breach by Cambridge Analytica today. While conceding that the social network hadn't done enough to stop data privacy, Zuckerberg said he was "sorry" for mistakes made by Facebook for use of personal data. In his opening remarks, Zuckerberg said it had "become clear over the last couple of years that we haven't done enough to prevent the tools we've built from being used for harm as well." "Whether it's fake news, foreign interference in elections or developers misusing people’s information, we didn’t take a broad enough view of our responsibilities. That was a mistake, and I’m sorry." The Facebook data breach had hit 2.7 million European Union(EU) citizens. "We are using new technology to prevent fake news," Zukerberg told UK lawmakers, adding,"keeping people safe is our priority." Zuckerberg had appeared before the US Senate Intelligence Committee on data breach last month. Zuckerberg told the lawmakers that Apps that measure data will be banned. "We are working with governments to prevent poll meddling," he said. "I believe deeply in what we're doing. And when we address these challenges, I know we'll look back and view helping people connect and giving more people a voice as a positive force here in Europe and around the world," he added. The EU has put new rules on data protection in place under which companies will be subjected to fines of up to 4 per cent of global turnover for breaching them. Zuckerberg will go on to meet French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday.

Now, Zuckerberg apologizes to UK lawmakers over data breach

Facebook received more than 22,000 requests from the Indian government for data in 2017, the second highest globally after the US, the social networking giant said.

The company in its Transparency Report said it had received 9,853 total requests in January-June 2017, followed by 12,171 requests in the later half of the year. This is about 62 per cent higher than 2016 when the Indian government made 13,613 such requests.

According to the half-yearly report, Facebook -- which is the second largest userbase for the social networking giant -- received 12,171 requests from Indian government agencies for 17,262 users/accounts in the second half of 2017. It had produced some data in 53 per cent of the requests made.

Facebook had received over 65,000 government requests for user data in the US in 2017. Globally, it had received over 1.6 lakh requests in 2017 as compared to about 1.23 lakh requests in the previous year.

The company said it responds to government requests for data in accordance with applicable law and our terms of service.&nbsp

"Each and every request we receive is carefully reviewed for legal sufficiency and we may reject or require greater specificity on requests that appear overly broad or vague," it added.

Besides, Facebook also said it had restricted 1,914 content pieces in July-December 2017 in India, more than double that of the year-ago period following requests from law enforcement agencies.

The US-based company had restricted 719 pieces in the July-December 2016 period while 1,228 content pieces were restricted in the January-June 2017 period, the Transparency Report said.

"We restricted access to content in India in response to legal requests from law enforcement agencies and the India Computer Emergency Response Team within the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology," the report said.

It added that majority of the content restricted was alleged to violate Indian laws relating to the defamation of religion, hate speech, and defamation of the state.

Globally, Facebook restricted 14,294 content pieces in the second half of 2017, compared to 28,036 in January-June 2017 and 6,944 pieces in July-December 2016.

Facebook said when something on its platform or Instagram is reported to it as violating local law but does not go against its Community Standards, it may restrict the content's availability in the country where it is alleged to be illegal. When a single piece of content is restricted in multiple countries, each restriction is counted independently.

It added that the US-based company receives reports from governments and courts, as well from non-government entities like members of the Facebook community and NGOs.&nbsp

The highest number of content pieces restricted in India by Facebook was in January-June 2015 when 15,155 total restrictions were made. Facebook has been making these disclosures from as early as 2013.&nbsp

Facebook had received over 65,000 government requests for user data in the US in 2017

Facebook received more than 22,000 requests from the Indian government for data in 2017, the second highest globally after the US, the social networking giant said. The company in its Transparency Report said it had received 9,853 total requests in January-June 2017, followed by 12,171 requests in the later half of the year. This is about 62 per cent higher than 2016 when the Indian government made 13,613 such requests. According to the half-yearly report, Facebook -- which is the second largest userbase for the social networking giant -- received 12,171 requests from Indian government agencies for 17,262 users/accounts in the second half of 2017. It had produced some data in 53 per cent of the requests made. Facebook had received over 65,000 government requests for user data in the US in 2017. Globally, it had received over 1.6 lakh requests in 2017 as compared to about 1.23 lakh requests in the previous year. The company said it responds to government requests for data in accordance with applicable law and our terms of service. "Each and every request we receive is carefully reviewed for legal sufficiency and we may reject or require greater specificity on requests that appear overly broad or vague," it added. Besides, Facebook also said it had restricted 1,914 content pieces in July-December 2017 in India, more than double that of the year-ago period following requests from law enforcement agencies. The US-based company had restricted 719 pieces in the July-December 2016 period while 1,228 content pieces were restricted in the January-June 2017 period, the Transparency Report said. "We restricted access to content in India in response to legal requests from law enforcement agencies and the India Computer Emergency Response Team within the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology," the report said. It added that majority of the content restricted was alleged to violate Indian laws relating to the defamation of religion, hate speech, and defamation of the state. Globally, Facebook restricted 14,294 content pieces in the second half of 2017, compared to 28,036 in January-June 2017 and 6,944 pieces in July-December 2016. Facebook said when something on its platform or Instagram is reported to it as violating local law but does not go against its Community Standards, it may restrict the content's availability in the country where it is alleged to be illegal. When a single piece of content is restricted in multiple countries, each restriction is counted independently. It added that the US-based company receives reports from governments and courts, as well from non-government entities like members of the Facebook community and NGOs. The highest number of content pieces restricted in India by Facebook was in January-June 2015 when 15,155 total restrictions were made. Facebook has been making these disclosures from as early as 2013.

Facebook received over 22 thousand data requests from Indian govt in 2017

Political consulting group Cambridge Analytica used Russian researchers and shared data with companies linked to Russian intelligence, a whistleblower told a congressional hearing on interference in the 2016 US election Wednesday.

Christopher Wylie, who leaked information on the British-based firm's hijacking of data on millions of Facebook users, told a Senate panel he believes Russian intelligence services had access to data harvested by the consultancy.

Wylie told the panel that Russian-American researcher Aleksandr Kogan, who created an application to harvest Facebook user profile data, was working at the same time on Russian-funded projects, including "behavioral research."

"This means that in addition to Facebook data being accessed in Russia, there are reasonable grounds to suspect that CA may have been an intelligence target of Russian security services...(and) that Russian security services may have been notified of the existence of CA's Facebook data," Wylie said in his written testimony.

Wylie added that Cambridge Analytica "used Russian researchers to gather its data, (and) openly shared information on 'rumor campaigns' and 'attitudinal inoculation'" with companies and executives linked to the Russian intelligence agency FSB.

The hearing is part of a broad inquiry on both sides of the Atlantic over the misuse of Facebook data by the consulting firm working on Donald Trump's 2016 campaign.

Facebook has accused Cambridge Analytica of misappropriating its user data by violating terms of the data agreement with Kogan, the academic researcher.

On Tuesday, the New York Times reported that the FBI and Justice are investigating Cambridge Analytica for potential criminal violations.

The Times said it was unclear whether the probe was linked to the one led by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who is investigating whether the Trump campaign colluded with Russia.

'Black ops' at CA&nbsp

Wylie told the panel that "the ethos of the firm was 'anything goes'" for its political campaigns, including "attempting to divert health ministry funds in a struggling African country to support a politician's re-election campaign."

He added that he was aware of "black ops" at the company, "which I understood to include using hackers to break into computer systems to acquire kompromat or other intelligence for its clients."

He said that one of the tactics used to interfere with voter participation included "weaponizing fear."

"In one country, CA produced videos intended to suppress turnout by showing voters sadistic images of victims being burned alive, undergoing forced amputations with machetes and having their throats cut in a ditch," he said.

"These videos also conveyed Islamophobic messages. It was created with a clear intent to intimidate certain communities, catalyze religious hatred, portray Muslims as terrorists and deny certain voters of their democratic rights."

Cambridge Analytica announced earlier this month it was shutting down, unable to recover from the Facebook-linked scandal.

Its chief executive Alexander Nix was suspended after he was filmed by undercover reporters bragging about ways to win political campaigns, including through blackmail and honey traps.

Another whistleblower said that Britons' personal data may have been misused by a pro-Brexit campaign ahead of the 2016 referendum in which Britain voted to leave the European Union.

Christopher Wylie, who leaked information on the British-based firm's hijacking of data on millions of Facebook users, told a Senate panel he believes Russian intelligence services had access to data harvested by the consultancy

Political consulting group Cambridge Analytica used Russian researchers and shared data with companies linked to Russian intelligence, a whistleblower told a congressional hearing on interference in the 2016 US election Wednesday. Christopher Wylie, who leaked information on the British-based firm's hijacking of data on millions of Facebook users, told a Senate panel he believes Russian intelligence services had access to data harvested by the consultancy. Wylie told the panel that Russian-American researcher Aleksandr Kogan, who created an application to harvest Facebook user profile data, was working at the same time on Russian-funded projects, including "behavioral research." "This means that in addition to Facebook data being accessed in Russia, there are reasonable grounds to suspect that CA may have been an intelligence target of Russian security services...(and) that Russian security services may have been notified of the existence of CA's Facebook data," Wylie said in his written testimony. Wylie added that Cambridge Analytica "used Russian researchers to gather its data, (and) openly shared information on 'rumor campaigns' and 'attitudinal inoculation'" with companies and executives linked to the Russian intelligence agency FSB. The hearing is part of a broad inquiry on both sides of the Atlantic over the misuse of Facebook data by the consulting firm working on Donald Trump's 2016 campaign. Facebook has accused Cambridge Analytica of misappropriating its user data by violating terms of the data agreement with Kogan, the academic researcher. On Tuesday, the New York Times reported that the FBI and Justice are investigating Cambridge Analytica for potential criminal violations. The Times said it was unclear whether the probe was linked to the one led by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who is investigating whether the Trump campaign colluded with Russia. 'Black ops' at CA Wylie told the panel that "the ethos of the firm was 'anything goes'" for its political campaigns, including "attempting to divert health ministry funds in a struggling African country to support a politician's re-election campaign." He added that he was aware of "black ops" at the company, "which I understood to include using hackers to break into computer systems to acquire kompromat or other intelligence for its clients." He said that one of the tactics used to interfere with voter participation included "weaponizing fear." "In one country, CA produced videos intended to suppress turnout by showing voters sadistic images of victims being burned alive, undergoing forced amputations with machetes and having their throats cut in a ditch," he said. "These videos also conveyed Islamophobic messages. It was created with a clear intent to intimidate certain communities, catalyze religious hatred, portray Muslims as terrorists and deny certain voters of their democratic rights." Cambridge Analytica announced earlier this month it was shutting down, unable to recover from the Facebook-linked scandal. Its chief executive Alexander Nix was suspended after he was filmed by undercover reporters bragging about ways to win political campaigns, including through blackmail and honey traps. Another whistleblower said that Britons' personal data may have been misused by a pro-Brexit campaign ahead of the 2016 referendum in which Britain voted to leave the European Union.

Cambridge Analytica shared data with Russia: Whistleblower

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