Senator Cantwell to FTC: Settlement Lets Facebook "Off the Hook"
Senator Maria Cantwell [D-WA], Ranking Member on the Senate Commerce Committee, has sent a letter to Federal Trade Commission Chairman Joseph Simons regarding the FTC's controversial settlement with Facebook. "I am concerned that the settlement lets Facebook off the hook for unspecified violations, and given the many public reports of Facebook's mishandling of consumer data, it is difficult to fully understand the impact of this provision on the settlement on the data privacy protection of the millions of U.S. consumers that have used and continue to use Facebook," Cantwell wrote to Simons. Through a Freedom of Information Act Request. EPIC has obtained thousands of new consumer complaints (part 1, part 2) against Facebook. EPIC is formally challenging the proposed settlement, charging that the Commission has failed to investigate thousands of complaints against the company.