FTC slaps Facebook with $5B fine over privacy missteps

Published July 24, 2019 2:36pm ET



The Federal Trade Commission hit Facebook with a record-breaking $5 billion fine on Wednesday, along with a slew of new privacy restrictions in response to its mishandling of users’ private data.

The penalty, the largest levied against a company for privacy violations, stems from an investigation the FTC opened last year into claims Facebook violated a 2012 consent decree with deceptive practices that left users unaware the company was sharing their personal data with third-party apps.

Trusted reporting.Unlimited access.

Subscribe for full access to Washington Examiner coverage, expert political analysis, and subscriber-only journalism.

Get Unlimited Access

Already a member? Log in

Cancel anytime.