Startups

Twitter also sold data to the same researcher who harvested 87 million Facebook accounts

Ever since the scandal of Facebook selling data to Cambridge Analytica has emerged, users have started putting more attention to what they are sharing on their social media. Now, in another news, it has been brought forward that Twitter also gave the data of its users to the Cambridge Analytica related researcher, Aleksandr Kogan.

The Sunday Telegraph very recently reported that Dr. Kogan was able to gain a one-time API access to a sample of random public tweets spanning over a five-month period between December 2014 and April 2015. Aleksandr Kogan is the same data researcher who created Facebook personality profiles for Cambridge Analytica, using the data which Facebook had provided him.

Although it hasn’t yet been confirmed if this data was actually used for non-ethical purposes, Dr. Kogan has stated that the data was just used for building “brand reports” and “survey extender tools”, all remaining well inbound of Twitter’s policies. On the other hand, Cambridge Analytica also stated that the data Kogan received from Twitter was never bought by Cambridge Analytica.

It might be noted here, that Twitter formally allows large enterprises and companies to access data that can be used to gauge public sentiments surrounding certain events.

Very recently, it was brought forward that Facebook had let Cambridge Analytica, a political consultancy firm, to use the data of as much as 87 million users without their consent to design political campaigns in voters in the US elections. As the scandal was unfolding, the company faced a huge backlash. Just yesterday, WhatsApp co-founder left Facebook amid data privacy issues.

Sponsored
Muneeb Ahmad

I love to talk about global tech-happenings, startups, industry, education and economy. Get in touch: muneeb@techjuice.pk.

Share
Published by
Muneeb Ahmad

Recent Posts

PTV Faces Criticism Over Misleading Chemotherapy Statements

ISLAMABAD: On Pakistan Television (PTV), medical experts raised serious concerns over false information on chemotherapy…

23 mins ago

OpenAI Rolls Out Advanced Voice Mode for macOS ChatGPT App

OpenAI has introduced Advanced Voice Mode to ChatGPT's desktop applications for macOS apps, enabling users…

33 mins ago

Garena Free Fire India Launch Rumors: What Fans Need to Know

Reports suggest that Garena Free Fire is set to make a much-anticipated return to India.…

19 hours ago

Albania Bans TikTok for One Year: Here’s the Reason!

The Albanian government has announced a ban on the social media platform TikTok for a…

22 hours ago

Google Pixel 9 Pro vs. 8 Pro: Biggest Upgrades Compared

The launch of Google’s latest Pixel lineup brings an exciting chance to compare the new…

1 day ago

Azad Kashmir to Host Pakistan’s First Women-Centric Software Technology Park

ISLAMABAD: In February next year, Pakistan is set to launch its first women-focused software technology…

1 day ago