Facebook announced that it was preparing for a massive fine from the Federal Trade Commission for its mishandling of user privacy. The fine could be as much as $5 billion.
The social media giant revealed the fine as a one-time expense in its annual earnings statement, explaining a 51% decline in income, “in connection with the inquiry of the FTC into our platform and user data practices.”
“We estimate that the range of loss in this matter is $3.0bn to $5.0bn,” the company’s statement explained. “The matter remains unresolved, and there can be no assurance as to the timing or the terms of any final outcome.”
Facebook has been the target of an FTC investigation to determine if it had violated a 2011 consent decree following the 2018 revelation that it improperly shared data with Cambridge Analytica.
Despite the size of the fine, the company showed continuous growth and an expansion of its ecosystem of apps.
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