Facebook Suspends 200 Apps that May Have Misused User Data

Following the Cambridge Analytica user data scandal, Facebook vowed to investigate all apps that accessed user data — they have now suspended 200 apps that may have misused users’ personal information.

During his testimony before Congress, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg stated that the social media company would be reviewing all apps on their platform to ensure that they didn’t misuse user data. Following the initial stages of this audit, Facebook has suspended approximately 200 apps, Engadget reports. No information about which apps have been suspended has been released but it’s expected that this information will be made public in the coming days.

If one of these apps has misused a user’s data, Facebook has pledged it will contact that user directly to inform them of the issue, similar to how Facebook informed users that were affected by the Cambridge Analytica scandal. During his testimony before Congress, Mark Zuckerberg stated: “There is a lot more work to be done to find all the apps that may have misused people’s Facebook data — and it will take time.”

Approximately 87 million users had their personal details accessed without their express permission during the Cambridge Analytica scandal, this resulted in Zuckerberg testifying before Congress and multiple investigations into Facebook’s privacy practices taking place across the world. It’s hard to estimate how many users will be affected if 200 apps had access to data without their permission but it is likely to be far more than those affected by the Cambridge Analytica scandal. This could pose huge issues for Facebook in the future, especially given their latest attempts to collect users data via a new dating app feature.