Privacy Group Asks Court To Let It Review Facebook’s $5 Billion Settlement

When Facebook reached a $5 billion settlement with the Federal Trade Commission over its privacy infractions, many advocacy groups were critical. Because even though the fine was record-setting, it’s still a drop in the bucket compared to the social media giant’s overall revenue. Now, one of these privacy groups went a step further this week and asked a court to reconsider the fine altogether, saying that the settlement is not “adequate, reasonable or appropriate.”

The group, called the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), filed a motion with a U.S. District Court proposing that it and other advocacy groups should get a chance to review the proposed settlement and file comments.

“The proposed settlement is clearly not in the public interest, as it leaves consumer complaints unaddressed while still failing to ensure consumer privacy on Facebook,” EPIC said in its filing. “This court has a mandate not to ‘stand by and approve any consent decree placed before it’ and ‘is not obliged to accept one that appears to make a mockery of judicial power’ like the consent decree proposed in this case.”

In addition to these advocates, many prominent U.S. lawmakers have been critical of the proposed deal, too. If this kind of pressure keeps up, there’s a chance it really might get scuttled before it becomes final.




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