How Cambridge Analytica Exploited the Facebook Data of Millions | NYT

Summary

In 2014, a seemingly innocent online quiz led to a major privacy breach when personal data from millions of Facebook users was harvested by Cambridge Analytica. The data, gathered through a personality survey, was combined with Facebook likes, voter records, and friends’ information to create psychographic profiles. This data was then used for targeted political messaging, allegedly benefiting Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign. Though Facebook disputes the claim of a data breach, the incident raised serious concerns about privacy and trust, prompting investigations by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.

Takeaways

• 😀 In 2014, an online quiz shared personal data, including that of friends, with a company connected to President Trump's 2016 campaign.
• 😀 The quiz was created by Cambridge Analytica (C.A.), which partnered with U.K. academic Aleksandr Kogan to collect Facebook data for research purposes.
• 😀 Participants in the quiz, which assessed personality traits, had to log into Facebook, allowing Kogan access to their profile, including likes, location, and birth date.
• 😀 Kogan combined the quiz data with Facebook data to develop psychometric profiles, which were then shared with Cambridge Analytica for further use.
• 😀 C.A. used these psychometric models to create personality profiles of users, focusing on exploitable traits like neuroses.
• 😀 Kogan’s app also accessed data from Facebook friends, compiling profiles for up to 87 million users, significantly expanding the data collected.
• 😀 The data harvested from 270,000 quiz participants, plus their friends, made up nearly a quarter of U.S. Facebook users.
• 😀 Cambridge Analytica used this vast data pool to target individuals with tailored political messaging, claiming it helped the Trump campaign's strategy.
• 😀 The Trump campaign denied that C.A.’s targeted messaging played a significant role in their strategy, despite C.A. taking credit.
• 😀 Kogan’s actions violated Facebook’s policies, as he shared user data with Cambridge Analytica under the guise of academic research.
• 😀 Facebook claimed this was not a 'data breach,' as no passwords were stolen, but Mark Zuckerberg acknowledged it as a breach of trust, with an ongoing investigation by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.

Q & A

What was the main purpose of the quiz mentioned in the video?

The quiz was initially intended for research purposes, and participants were paid less than $5 to complete it, which involved answering over 100 personality trait-related questions.

How did the quiz collect personal data from users?

To take the survey, users were required to log into Facebook, which granted the app access to their Facebook profile, including their birth date, location, and most importantly, their likes on Facebook.

What did Aleksandr Kogan do with the data collected from Facebook users?

Aleksandr Kogan combined the quiz responses with the collected Facebook data to create psychometric profiles, which included details on personality traits, such as neuroses and other exploitable characteristics.

How was the personal data of Facebook friends involved in the data collection process?

In addition to collecting data from quiz participants, Kogan's app also accessed the personal data of their Facebook friends, compiling similar psychometric profiles for them as well.

How many people’s data were affected by this data harvesting?

Approximately 270,000 people participated in the survey, but the personal data of up to 87 million Facebook users, including their friends, was also harvested.

What was the role of Cambridge Analytica in this data harvesting scheme?

Cambridge Analytica used the data to target people with political messaging, claiming that the psychometric profiles helped shape their strategy for the Trump campaign.

Did the Trump campaign confirm the role of Cambridge Analytica's data in their strategy?

No, the Trump campaign disputed the claim that Cambridge Analytica’s data targeting helped shape their strategy, despite C.A.'s assertion that it was central to their approach.

Was the sharing of Facebook data with Cambridge Analytica a violation of any policies?

Yes, Aleksandr Kogan shared the data with Cambridge Analytica, which was a violation of Facebook's policies, as the data was collected under the premise of academic research.

How did Facebook respond to the situation?

Facebook stated that it was not a data breach in terms of stolen passwords or infiltrated systems, but Mark Zuckerberg acknowledged that it was a breach of trust between Facebook and its users.

What is the U.S. Federal Trade Commission's involvement in this case?

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission is investigating the situation to determine whether Facebook’s actions or Cambridge Analytica’s data usage violated any regulations or laws.