This is the first of a series about how communities can fight back and protect themselves against weaponized disinformation. In 2015 and 2016, new and paranoid strains of political ideology took social media discourse by storm. The details varied by c
Publication: Cambridge Analytica
Truth or Fiction?→ Zuckerberg Doubles Down on Not Banning Steve Bannon in Senate Hearing
Facebook chief executive officer Mark Zuckerberg has claimed in testimony to federal lawmakers that far-right broadcaster and Donald Trump adviser Steve Bannon’s recent call for the decapitation of federal officials did not warrant being banned
Snopes→ Judge Orders Facebook to Turn Over Records on Data Privacy
The data of more than 50 million Facebook users had been misappropriated without their knowledge by Cambridge Analytica in 2015.
Snopes→ Facebook Anticipates an FTC Privacy Fine of Up to $5 Billion
The one-time charge slashed Facebook's first-quarter net income considerably, although revenue grew by 25% in the period.
Snopes→ Documents Show Facebook Used User Data as Competitive Weapon
Facebook called the documents misleading and said the information they contain is "only part of the story."
Snopes→ Lawsuit Accuses Brexit Backers of Running British Voter Data Through Mississippi in Violation of UK Law
Arron Banks brought "Cambridge Analytica on steroids" to the United States to hide it from British authorities, lawyer says.
Snopes→ Code Developed By Canadian Firm Hints at Voter ‘Disengagement’ Efforts in United States
The Trump campaign claimed that it could suppress Clinton votes twelve days before the 2016 election; unsecured files linked to a Canadian company offer insights into how that might be possible.
Snopes→ Papua New Guinea Newspaper Stands By Report of Facebook Ban Despite Lawmaker’s Claims
Communications Minister Sam Basil accused the Post-Courier of "distorting" statements in a widely-circulated report.
Snopes→ Cambridge Analytica Shuts Down — But Key Figures Open New Firm
The firm is under investigation in both the United States and Britain.
Snopes→ UK Academic Says Data Firm Helped Trump Campaign Spread Fear
A propaganda expert who has studied Cambridge Analytica says the company helped Donald Trump's presidential campaign use false statements and anti-Muslim messages to spread fear and resentment in swing states he needed to win.
Snopes→ Zuckerberg: It’s ‘Entirely Possible’ Cambridge Analytica Activities Overlapped With Indicted Russian Firm
Legal troubles continue to mount for the embattled psychographics firm as Facebook's chief executive officer speaks before Congress.
Snopes→ Can Facebook Users Receive $17,500 Each Over a ‘Data Breach’?
Facebook users everywhere are not entitled to collect cash in compensation over the Cambridge Analytica user data controversy.
Snopes→ Did Facebook Suspend the Account of the Whistleblower Who Exposed Cambridge Analytica?
The social media giant suspended Christopher Wylie's account after he went public with accusations that the psychographics firm abused the platform.
Snopes→ Does Facebook Categorize Users By Political Preferences?
A graphic circulating online in March 2018 brought new attention to one of the company's data-gathering tools.
Snopes→ Links Between Gulf Crisis and Trump Campaign Operatives Emerge
A British defense contractor linked to embattled psychographics firm Cambridge Analytica was hired by UAE to push social media posts accusing Qatar of sponsoring terrorism.
Snopes→ Expert Says Brexit Campaign Used Data Mined from Facebook
Chris Wylie's claims center around the official Vote Leave campaign and its links to a group called BeLeave, which it helped fund.
Snopes→ Facebook Ads Apologize for Cambridge Analytica Scandal
Facebook's CEO apologized for the Cambridge Analytica scandal with ads in multiple U.S. and British newspapers, saying the social media platform doesn't deserve to hold personal information if it can't protect it.
Snopes→ Did the Obama Campaign Employ the Same Tactics as Cambridge Analytica?
Attempts at "whataboutism" with a scandal involving social media and psychographics fail to acknowledge that Cambridge Analytica obtained data by misleading people.
Snopes→ Cambridge Analytica Parent Company Banned By Facebook Has Contract With State Department
SCL Group has been contracted by the State Department's Global Engagement Center to research terrorist recruitment and radicalization.
Snopes→ Facebook’s Recurring Nightmare: Helping Muddy Up Elections
Facebook has a problem it just can’t kick: People keep exploiting it in ways that could sway elections and even undermine democracy
Snopes→ Congressmen Expressed Interest in Talking to Big Data Firm in Russia Probe
Prominent Democrats from the Senate and House intelligence committees said they want to question representatives from Cambridge Analytica.
Snopes→ Privacy Advocates Criticize Kenyan Government’s Hiring of Cambridge Analytica
President Uhuru Kenyatta's Jubilee Party is working with the data firm that claims both Brexit and Trump's election as victories as he seeks reelection.