报告指出，公司们通过收集和商业化用户数据可以赚取数十亿美元，证明了通过商业监控预测、塑造和货币化人类行为是有利可图的，这也让这些公司凭此成为全球市值最高的一批公司。The US Federal Trade Commission released a new report on Thursday, investigating the data collection practices of several large social media platforms. The investigation found that none of the companies truly protected user privacy, but instead engaged in extensive monitoring of their users and sold the data to third-party clients.
On September 20th, Calisoco Financial (Editor Maran) reported that the US Federal Trade Commission released a shocking report on Thursday, stating that large social media platforms constantly monitor the activities of their users and regularly retain a vast amount of data about both users and non-users.
The report investigated the data collection practices of Facebook, WhatsApp, YouTube, Discord, Reddit, Amazon, Snap, TikTok, and X from January 2019 to December 2020. Unfortunately, not a single company truly complied with their commitment to protect user data.
The report points out that companies can earn billions of dollars by collecting and commercializing user data, proving that it is profitable to predict, shape, and monetize human behavior through commercial monitoring. This has made these companies the highest-valued companies in the global market.
The US Federal Trade Commission warns that the idea of self-regulation within the industry is evidently naive. This is not just the business model of individual companies, but the default incentive structure of the entire industry. At the cost of sacrificing user privacy and freedom, these companies have generated substantial profits.
Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan stated that users may face a range of harms, such as identity theft and tracking. Several companies have also failed to adequately protect the online safety of children and adolescents, which is particularly concerning.
Imposing heavy penalties to promote compliance.
In the era of big data, everyone has a sense of their own data being leaked, but it is difficult to make changes. When data is not only used to serve users themselves, but also traded as a tool for advertising companies, the risks faced by individuals may far exceed their imagination.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission stated that regardless of which platform is used, choosing to opt out of data collection is not easy. Almost all companies have stated that they input personal information into automated systems, usually used to provide content and advertising.
When asked to provide a list of third-party entities sharing data, nine companies failed to provide a complete list, indicating widespread misuse of platform data.
Khan pointed out in the statement that recognizing the basic facts of the industry is important for law enforcers and policymakers, as any restrictions or regulations on company data collection behavior conflict with their business interests. In order to compel these companies to comply with the rules, policymakers need to ensure that the cost of violating the law is severe enough.