DrThe Cambridge Analytica-related data scandal now has legal consequences for Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg: Washington, D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine filed a lawsuit against Zuckerberg personally on Monday. He accuses him of being “directly” involved in decisions that would enable data misuse, while at the same time Facebook misled users with promises of privacy. “Zuckerberg personally played a role in Facebook’s failure to protect user privacy and data,” Racine said.
The abuse of Cambridge Analytica data, which became known in 2018, is one of the biggest scandals in Facebook history. The British company illegally obtained the data of 87 million Facebook users.
“This lawsuit is not just justified, it is necessary.”
The lawsuit filed on Monday is among the first attempts to hold Zuckerberg personally accountable for any misconduct by his company. Attorney General Racine had tried other methods before. He previously sued Facebook in connection with the scandal in 2018, and last year sought to add Zuckerberg as an additional defendant in that lawsuit. But the judge rejected it, among other things, on the grounds that Racine had waited too long. Instead, Racine has now filed a separate lawsuit.
“This lawsuit is not only justified, it is necessary. It sends a message that business leaders, including CEOs, will be held accountable for their actions,” the attorney general said in a statement. Facebook changed its name to Meta last year.
