Mark Zuckerberg will testify before a congressional committee in the US to answer questions about Facebook’s privacy practices.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee has announced that Facebook’s chief executive will appear on Wednesday 11 April “regarding the company’s use and protection of user data”.
Facebook is currently facing investigations by authorities in the US, UK, and EU over a reported data incident between itself and consultancy firm Cambridge Analytica.
Following allegations that data belonging to its users was harvested by Cambridge Analytica, the company’s senior executives have been summoned to appear before MPs in the UK and Congress in the US.
Mr Zuckerberg has accepted the US invite, the committee confirmed on Wednesday, stating:
“This hearing will be an important opportunity to shed light on critical consumer data privacy issues and help all Americans better understand what happens to their personal information online.”
“We appreciate Mr Zuckerberg’s willingness to testify before the committee, and we look forward to him answering our questions on April 11th.”
Mr Zuckerberg was also invited to appear before a parliamentary inquiry over the alleged abuse of Facebook users’ data, but refused to attend.
MPs described Mr Zuckerberg’s refusal to answer their questions as “absolutely astonishing” when he offered to send senior executives to give evidence in his place.
From – SkyNews
