FTC Imposes Record-Setting $5 Billion Penalty To Resolve Allegations That Facebook Violated User Data Privacy

On July 24, 2019, the Federal Trade Commission ("FTC") announced that Facebook, Inc. ("Facebook" or the "Company") would pay a record-setting penalty in the amount of $5 billion to resolve allegations that it violated a 2012 FTC Order ("the 2012 Order") by misleading Facebook users about how the Company handled user personal data.¹ The Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") separately announced a $100 million settlement of allegations that Facebook's public disclosures about the potential for data misuse were misleading in light of its knowledge of misuse by Cambridge Analytica.² The settlement highlights the growing risks facing many U.S. companies with respect to innovative uses of data.