Facebook has blocked around 69,000 apps on its platform. This was announced by the company. The blockages took place in the course of investigations into the scandal around the data analysis company Cambridge Analytica.
Boston court records show that Facebook blocked most apps as a precautionary measure, without being able to determine whether they actually abused user data. Overall, apps are affected by about 400 developers.
As a result, most of the apps were blocked because their developers did not want to cooperate in the investigation of the online network and did not respond to questions sent by e-mail. With around 10,000 apps, Facebook is checking whether rules for dealing with users' data have been violated. They showed "characteristics that are associated with a higher risk of data misuse". 6000 applications came into focus because they were installed by many users. In 2000, Facebook reviewed the developers in depth and in 2000, the online network looked at whether they had queried too much user information.
Facebook holds according to "New York Times" information under lock and key
The numbers were revealed as part of a Facebook investigation by the Attorney General of the State of Massachusetts. A court rejected Facebook's request to keep her under wraps. The prosecutors would also like to know who the affected app developers are, Facebook holds the information, according to the "New York Times" but back.
According to the prosecutors in Boston, Facebook had already allowed developers in 2014 to integrate at least nine million apps into the network. For years, users have been allowed to collect user data, including photos, employment, birthdays and likes - not just from people who installed the apps, but also from their Facebook friends.
The court documents show that, according to Facebook has identified around two million apps that should be examined more closely because of possible misuse of user data. Facebook claims to have controlled millions of apps so far.
The Cambridge Analytica case brought massive pressure on Facebook in the spring of 2018. Data from Facebook users had been illegally passed on to Cambridge Analytica by the developer of a survey app over five years ago. The information was used to influence the 2016 US presidential election, which Donald Trump won.
Aaron P. Bernstein / REUTERS
Mark Zuckerberg on 11 April 2018 in his testimony before a congressional committee
Facebook knew at least since 2016 of the case, but was content with the assurance that the data had been destroyed and did not inform the users. Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg therefore had to testify before the congress. The investigation into the case by the US regulator FTC resulted in a $ 5 billion penalty for Facebook.