Facebook is buying its profits with our safety: Frances Haugen
Whistleblower Haugen testified before the US Congress stating that the buck stops with Mark Zuckerberg to put an end to Facebook's harmful algorithm that compromises public safety and democracy
In the latest among Facebook's woes, apart from the global outage that left Co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg poorer by around $6 billion, whistleblower Frances Haugen mounted grave accusations against the social media giant before the US Congress. On Tuesday, Haugen, who was the former product manager at Facebook's "Civic Integrity Team" explained why FB algorithms may have a harmful impact on society.
Among her accusations were how its products could impact the mental health of youngsters. She also noted how it could play a divisive role in society instead of bringing people together. "I am here today because I believe Facebook's products harm children, stoke division and weaken our democracy," she stated.
In a three-hour-long testimony, Haugen also said that Facebook consistently placed profits above the security of its users.
Haugen also placed the blame squarely on Zuckerberg, saying that the buck ultimately stops with him. She also referred to Facebook's longest global outage as the five hours that were not used to "deepen divides, destabilise democracies and make young girls and women feel bad about their bodies."
Many members of the US Congress also joined in a bi-partisan move, united in their criticism of Facebook. These included Senator Amy Klobuchar from Minnesota, Senator Marsha Blackburn, Republican from Tennessee, Senator Richard Blumenthal, and Democrat from Connecticut.
