FTC Alleges Major Social Media Platforms Engage in Extensive User Data Surveillance

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has accused major social media platforms of engaging in "vast surveillance" to monetize users' personal data, following a comprehensive years-long investigation. The report, based on inquiries launched nearly four years ago, revealed that companies collected massive amounts of data, sometimes even through brokers, and often retained it indefinitely—affecting both users and non-users alike.

FTC Chair Lina Khan criticized the practices, stating that they endangered individuals' privacy and exposed them to risks like identity theft and stalking. "The report shows how social media and video streaming companies exploit vast amounts of personal data, generating billions of dollars annually," Khan said. She also noted that the inadequate protection of children and teenagers online was particularly alarming.

The investigation found that social media companies' business models, particularly those relying on targeted advertising, incentivized large-scale data collection, often putting profit ahead of privacy. Khan emphasized that these practices could threaten freedoms and lead to significant harm, including identity theft and stalking.

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), however, disputed the FTC's portrayal of the industry. IAB CEO David Cohen argued that consumers understand and accept targeted ads as a way to access free online services, criticizing the FTC’s characterization of the industry as one focused on "mass surveillance."

The FTC's findings were based on information gathered from companies including Meta, YouTube, Snap, Amazon's Twitch, TikTok's parent company ByteDance, and X (formerly Twitter). While some companies, like Google, defended their practices—stating they don’t sell personal information and implement strict privacy protections—the report found these safeguards "woefully inadequate." It also noted that some firms failed to delete data upon users' requests, raising further concerns about how well companies protect personal data.

The report highlighted the negative impact of these platforms on children’s mental health and called for better data collection practices. Additionally, it urged the US Congress to enact comprehensive federal privacy legislation to curb the surveillance of social media users.

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