{"id":52583,"date":"2018-05-10T19:16:05","date_gmt":"2018-05-11T02:16:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/siliconeer.com\/current\/?p=52583"},"modified":"2018-05-10T19:16:08","modified_gmt":"2018-05-11T02:16:08","slug":"scandal-hit-cambridge-analytica-to-shut-down","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/siliconeer.com\/current\/scandal-hit-cambridge-analytica-to-shut-down\/","title":{"rendered":"Scandal-hit Cambridge Analytica to Shut Down"},"content":{"rendered":"

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg speaks during the annual F8 summit at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center in San Jose, Calif., May 1. Zuckerberg vowed to make privacy protection its top priority in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal. (Josh Edelson\/AFP\/Getty Images)<\/em><\/p>\n

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Cambridge Analytica, the UK-based political consulting firm at the heart of the massive data breach of Facebook users worldwide, announced it is shutting down, writes Aditi Khanna.<\/b><\/p>\n

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The company denies any wrongdoing but says that the negative media coverage has left it with no clients and mounting legal fees which has forced it to resort to closure.<\/p>\n

\u201cDespite Cambridge Analytica\u2019s unwavering confidence that its employees have acted ethically and lawfully, the siege of media coverage has driven away virtually all of the company\u2019s customers and suppliers,\u201d the company said in a statement.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a result, it has been determined that it is no longer viable to continue operating the business, which left Cambridge Analytica with no realistic alternative to placing the company into administration,\u201d it added.<\/p>\n

The firm was accused of improperly obtaining personal information on behalf of political clients.<\/p>\n

According to Facebook, data on up to 87 million users was harvested by an app and then passed on to the political consultancy.<\/p>\n

The social network said its own probe into the matter would continue.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Facebook’s Chief Technology Officer, Mike Schroepfer leaves after answering questions before the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee at Parliament in London, April 26. Mike Schroepfer appeared before a British parliamentary committee probing the role of fake news in recent votes, and how data gathered from the network was used to target potential voters. He admitted that Facebook had been “slow” in realizing how its data was being used following revelations that British communications firm Cambridge Analytica mined information on around 90 million users. (Daniel Leal-Olivas\/AFP\/Getty Images)<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cThis doesn\u2019t change our commitment and determination to understand exactly what happened and make sure it doesn\u2019t happen again,\u201d a Cambridge Analytica (CA) spokesperson said.<\/p>\n

The company said its parent company, SCL Elections, would also commence bankruptcy proceedings. This could impact its Indian operations as well.<\/p>\n

The chair of a U.K. Parliament committee investigating the firm\u2019s activities also raised concerns about CA and SCL Elections\u2019 move to shut down.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are party to very serious investigations and those investigations cannot be impeded by the closure of these companies,\u201d said MP Damian Collins.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s absolutely vital that the closure of these companies is not used as an excuse to try and limit or restrict the ability of the authorities to investigate what they were doing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Cambridge Analytica has been linked to Donald Trump\u2019s 2016 presidential campaign. Trump\u2019s campaign denies having used CA\u2019s data.<\/p>\n

Amid investigations, the British firm suspended CEO Alexander Tayler in April.<\/p>\n

It sought information on Facebook to build psychological profiles on a large portion of the U.S. electorate.<\/p>\n

The company was able to amass the database quickly with the help of an app that appeared to be a personality test. The app collected data on tens of millions of people and their Facebook friends, even those who did not download the app themselves.<\/p>\n

Facebook has since tightened its privacy restrictions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg speaks during the annual F8 summit at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center in San Jose, Calif., May 1. Zuckerberg vowed to make privacy protection its top priority in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal. (Josh Edelson\/AFP\/Getty Images) Cambridge Analytica, the UK-based political consulting firm at the heart of the…<\/p>\n

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