Facebook in trouble over users’ data breach

Britain’s data protection watchdog says it has fined Facebook 500,000 pounds (645,000 dollars) for “serious breaches of data protection law’’ in connection with the Cambridge Analytica scandal.

Recall that news had broken early this year that a data analytics firm once employed by the Trump campaign, Cambridge Analytica, had improperly gained access to personal data from millions of user profiles.

Then a congressional investigation found that agents from Russia and other countries have been posting fake political ads since at least 2016. In April, Zuckerberg appeared at a congressional hearing focused on Facebook’s privacy practices.

The British Information Commissioner’s Office said the fine followed an investigation that found Facebook processed the personal information of users unfairly.

“By also allowing application developers access to their information without sufficiently clear and informed consent,’’ the office.

It said Facebook also “failed to keep the personal information secure,” leading to one developer harvesting data that was partially shared with firms, including SCL Group, Cambridge Analytica’s parent company.

Facebook said attackers gained the ability to “seize control” of user accounts by stealing digital keys the company uses to keep users logged in. They could do so by exploiting three distinct bugs in Facebook’s code.

Facebook also said the hackers could also have used those stolen digital keys to access outside services or apps that let people to log in with their Facebook usernames and passwords. The company said it hasn’t found any evidence of this happening.

The company said it has fixed the bugs and logged out the 50 million breached users — plus another 40 million who were vulnerable to the attack — in order to reset those digital keys. Facebook said it doesn’t know who was behind the attacks or where they’re based. Neither passwords nor credit card data was stolen. At the time, the company said it alerted the FBI and regulators in the U.S. and Europe.

Facebook has faced a tumultuous year of security problems and privacy issues.

Recall that Ireland had also launched an investigation of Facebook over data breaches that allowed hackers access to 50 million accounts in on October 4, 2018.

The probe could potentially cost Facebook more than $1.6 billion in fines.

Also in September, European Union consumer protection chief Vera Jourova had said that she was growing impatient with Facebook for being too slow in clarifying the fine print in its terms of service covering what happens to user data and warned that the company could face sanctions.

The commission said in a statement that it would examine whether Facebook put in place “appropriate technical and organizational measures to ensure the security and safeguarding of the personal data it processes.”

The European Union implemented stronger data and privacy rules, known as the General Data Protection Regulation, in May.