US accuses social media giants of vast surveillance [Video]

A years-long analysis shows that social media titans engaged in “vast surveillance” to make money from people’s personal information, according to the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

A report based on queries launched nearly four years ago aimed at nine companies found they collected troves of data, sometimes through data brokers, and could indefinitely retain the information collected about users and non-users of their platforms.

“The report lays out how social media and video streaming companies harvest an enormous amount of Americans’ personal data and monetize it to the tune of billions of dollars a year,” FTC Chair Lina Khan said in a release.

“Several firms’ failure to adequately protect kids and teens online is especially troubling.”

Khan contended that the surveillance practices endangered people’s privacy and exposed them to the potential of identity theft or stalking.

Business models that typically involve targeted advertising incentivized mass collection of user data …