They've been selling the data for years. Anyone that thinks a classic Web 2.0 style site/app( where the users provide the content ) isn't selling their information is naive.
Sure, but other countries don't all allow that. Should it be this way in the future? In the U.S. we create the wild-west, and only consider reigning something in if people are dying, or it causes some bubble/scandal of significant size. Then we have to fight conservatives/corporations to get things changed. It's just a matter of time before privacy blows up, this is just one example.
You are fine with private for-profits having all your data, and yet we have laws to prevent *government* from accessing data purely for safety purposes. Hell, we have Republicans yelling about FISA warrants to access information...for national security with court oversight and everything. But internet usage? Bah, anything goes! It's an absurd difference. People are easily lulled into complacency because they have not personally gotten burned.
Also, this particular case is much more complex. The general jist I saw was:
- Russian government "professor" gets access to facebook data under the guise of using it for university research (allowed)
- Sells or gives this information to Cambridge Analytica, the firm hired by Trump to run his digital troll, fake news nonsense generator (not proper use)
- Cambrdige analytica gets requests during this time from Lukoil, to explain how they are precisely targeting Americans for propaganda, lots of back and forth
- Cambridge Analytica shown on undercover camera talking about entrapment/honey pots, hiring hookers to seduce candidates, making fake deals to show corruption, etc.
Even setting aside the obvious Russia/Republican traitors....even as a non-partisan, why are we so indifferent about being manipulated at this level for a national election? Makes no sense.
