Facebook may soon have a federally approved privacy official and an “independent” privacy oversight committee to deal with the company’s handling of user information.
The moves are being considered as part of a settlement between the social media giant and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), who has been investigating Facebook since March 2018 for allowing Cambridge to access the personal data of nearly 90 million Facebook users for political gain.
Under the deal that’s being negotiated, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg would be tasked with carrying out the company’s privacy policies under a new assumed role of “designated compliance officer.”
Under this proposed negotiated deal, Facebook board members might sit on the oversight committee, which will meet quarterly and issue reports.
The FTC, meanwhile, may have veto power over the federally approved privacy official. Last week Zuckerberg revealed that as part of the anticipated settlement with the FTC, Facebook also expects to pay $3 billion to $5 billion in fines.