What the FTC v Facebook settlement means for you

This settlement is a start, but shows what we really need is comprehensive privacy legislation. The FTC operates under the FTC Act (from 1914, which obviously doesn't explicitly mention the internet or privacy).

That means they can only impose enforcement against "unfair or deceptive practices," but don't have the authority to tell you what is okay or not beforehand. So while Facebook should have known better than to repeatedly push (and cross) the line on privacy and data, it's not totally clear which specific behaviors aren't allowed.

Photo of Mark Zuckerberg by Alessio Jacona, CC BY-SA 2.0, at

FTC,Facebook,firefox,container,tracking,cambridge analytica,mozilla,mark zuckerberg,