The CEO and co-founder of Meta, Mark Zuckerberg, is scheduled to testify in court as a star witness. The allegation is that Facebook operated unlawfully by allowing user data to be used without proper consent.
The case was filed by shareholders of Meta Platforms — the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp — as well as by other current and former company leaders. They are accused of repeatedly violating a 2012 agreement between Facebook and the Federal Trade Commission to protect users’ data.
The lawsuits began in 2018, after data from millions of Facebook users was harvested by Cambridge Analytica, a political consulting firm, no longer operating. Donald Trump’s successful 2016 presidential campaign was handled by the firm.
The $8 billion in damages sought by shareholders includes a record $5 billion fine that the FTC slapped on Facebook in 2019 for breaking its 2012 agreement. The defendants include former COO Sheryl Sandberg; venture capitalist and board member Marc Andreessen; and former board members Peter Thiel (co-founder of Palantir Technologies) and Reed Hastings (co-founder of Netflix).
In court documents, the defendants have rejected the accusations, referring to them as "extreme claims." The non-jury trial in Wilmington, Delaware, began on Wednesday and is scheduled for eight consecutive days. The decade-old events and board meetings will be scrutinized to assess the implementation of the 2012 agreement.
Jeannie Paterson, who specializes in consumer protection and AI regulation, used the word “unusual” when speaking about the case.
Jason Kint, the head of Digital Content Next, a trade group for content providers, said the case proceedings will provide clarity regarding what and when the board knew about the user's data usage. He spoke about the vast user base of Facebook and Instagram and noted that the platforms have become unavoidable in most of our lives. However, he also warned about how much trust can be placed in Mark Zuckerberg, one of the key defendants.
