By: Bradley Bostwick
“It’s both terrifying and potentially really inspiring.” These are the words used by Professor Andrew Przybylski to describe Facebook’s shift towards a metaverse-based company. To help understand Facebook’s expansion, the metaverse is what will come after the internet and will be a virtual space where humans can operate and interact with each other by using virtual reality (“VR”) and augmented reality (“AR”) powered avatars. Facebook recently announced its plans to rebrand—which includes a corporate name change—in light of the scrutiny it faced for the collection of sensitive user data.
Historically, Facebook has been subject to investigations concerning privacy violations; however, this current lawsuit marks the first time Facebook’s co-founder and chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg (“Zuckerberg”), has been personally charged. In the past, the U.S. Government dropped mention of Zuckerberg in court orders during its settlement with Facebook in 2011. Had the government pursued charges, Zuckerberg could have faced fines for future privacy violations like the one he is currently being charged with.
More recently, the attorney general for the District of Columbia added Zuckerberg to a lawsuit stemming from the Cambridge Analytica scandal in which Facebook exposed 87 million users’ data to researchers at Cambridge Analytica. The attorney general sued Facebook under the Consumer Protection Procedures Act (“CCPA”), alleging that Facebook misled users about the security of their data. However, the CCPA also holds individuals liable for the actions of a company if they were aware of them at the time. In subsequent investigations, it became apparent that Zuckerberg “knowing and actively” participated in every decision that resulted in Cambridge Analytica’s collection of sensitive user data. Not only was Zuckerberg aware of the data mishandling, but he also misrepresented how secure a user’s data was. This led to the attorney general’s decision to personally target Zuckerberg. In 2019, the Government reached a $5 billion settlement with Facebook for its involvement in the Cambridge Analytica scandal; however, Zuckerberg and Facebook are still not in the clear. They are both under intense scrutiny from the public and lawmakers following a series of articles published by the Wall Street Journal that exposed Facebook’s lack of a response to its harmful impacts on users. The documents revealed that Facebook knew for years that it was harming people–specifically teenagers–and took no action. These articles are significant because they were based on internal data provided by a former employee of Facebook. These leaked documents may provide lawmakers the opportunity to impose greater regulations on the tech giant.
During Facebook’s ongoing PR nightmare, the company is trying to emphasize its new name, Meta, and its launch into the so-called metaverse. Some experts have called this a “genius” and “classic” move in the world of branding, but still worry that it is not enough to save the company’s reputation. In the weeks since the leaked documents, Facebook has ramped up its emphasis on the push into the metaverse with hopes of drawing attention away from the negative media. Anne Olderog, a senior partner at a consulting firm with 20 years of brand strategy expertise, stated that Facebook’s efforts to divert the conversations from its current problems to the metaverse “is exciting and futuristic.” Further, Olderog stated that the metaverse is a brilliant move because nobody knows what it is. Despite her admiration of this move, Olderog also cautioned that it is not enough to counteract the damaged public perception. She believes fundamental work needs to be done to address these current problems or else we will see the same issues arise at the metaverse level.
Given Facebook’s history of abuse concerning both user health and data protection, lawmakers should not hesitate to impose greater regulations on the tech giant; especially before it enters the unchartered metaverse. As Olderog discussed, immediate fundamental changes are necessary to avoid repeated abuses in the future at a different level. While Facebook may be the first tech giant to launch into the metaverse, it will not be long before others follow suit; therefore, I suggest a more universal solution to the problems that have been revealed in Facebook’s scandals. My proposed solution consists of three prongs: (1) allow users when signing up for social media platforms to select what data is shared; (2) create a comprehensive set of regulations that are specifically designed for the metaverse; and (3) regularly conducted audits by third parties on tech giants. Giving users the power to choose what data is shared provides transparency for users and will hopefully restore a sense of trust in social media platforms. Additionally, as the world becomes more digitized, the second prong provides a specified set of rules and regulations that must be followed to protect consumer data and ensure safe practices. The third prong serves to discourage data breaches and potential harm to social network users as seen in the Cambridge Analytica and Facebook scandal.
With history and now direct evidence on their side, lawmakers should take a proactive approach in regulating tech giants and their exploration into the metaverse. There is no need to wait until a significant data breach or a whistleblower to take adequate steps to protect users of future technology.
Student Bio: Bradley Bostwick is a second-year law student at Suffolk University Law School. He is a staffer on the Journal of High Technology Law. Bradley received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Economics with a Minor in Finance from Syracuse University.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this blog are the views of the author alone and do not represent the views of JHTL or Suffolk University Law School.
