Than what any data miners do?
Considering reading about it.
https://www.theguardian.com/news/20...er-christopher-wylie-faceook-nix-bannon-trump
First - using facebook profiles to target widget adds to you is one thing. Using that to create a disinformation/information campaign in media (it only originates on the web, it crosses to TV, etc.), in order to influence government elections. If you think they are identical..targeting widget adds to you, and national elections, than that would be an issue.
I think neither are acceptable, but obvious one may change the market share of a company, the other changes who runs nations. I think it's obvious that it's being taken too far. It's literally psychological warfare as it's used by intelligence agencies, used against their own populations.
- The survey was voluntary, but it was linked to an app that pulled your personal data from facebook (irrelevant to the quiz), AND your friends data (without them even taking a quiz).
At the end of which Kogan’s app, called thisismydigitallife, gave him permission to access their Facebook profiles. And not just theirs, but their friends’ too. On average, each “seeder” – the people who had taken the personality test, around 320,000 in total – unwittingly gave access to at least 160 other people’s profiles, none of whom would have known or had reason to suspect.
- Kogan lied about being connected to Russia. Turns out, surprise, he has Russian government grants to study social media, Russian teaching position, speaks Russian, etc.
- Kogan's app started pulling so much personal data that it triggered Facebook security. They asked him what's going on. He said it was for academic research, so they said "OK". It clearly was not for academic research as used by C.A.
- Facebook asked them to delete the data. They encrypted it and spread it out. There was no real checking/verification from Facebook to see if they deleted the information.
- As they developed these sophisticated techniques to change elections using what is really a misuse of stolen data via fraud, Lukoil who is also working with them internationally, wanted more information on how they can make the connections between American voters and consumers (among other things, it was a back and forth of them wanting more information)
Lukoil is sanctioned by the U.S., it's essentially an arm of the Kremlin. For example, someone of Russian interest brought up on legal charges, Lukoil bails them out...yes, an oil company randomly bails out someone of interest to the Kremlin...it's why they are not allowed in the U.S.)
Nix wrote to Wylie: “We have been asked to write a memo to Lukoil (the Russian oil and gas company) to explain to them how our services are going to apply to the petroleum business. Nix said that “they understand behavioural microtargeting in the context of elections” but that they were “failing to make the connection between voters and their consumers”. The work, he said, would be “shared with the CEO of the business”, a former Soviet oil minister and associate of Putin, Vagit Alekperov.
“It didn’t make any sense to me,” says Wylie. “I didn’t understand either the email or the pitch presentation we did. Why would a Russian oil company want to target information on American voters?”
So if we assumed the worst based on the information so far, this is what you have:
- Professor who took grants/position from Russia to research "social media psychology"
- Creates a survey that steals your data (not related to the survey), and your entire friends list (others, Obama? may have used firm that did similar...)
- Lied to Facebook saying it was only going to be used for Academic Research
- Given or sold for a token fee to Cambridge Analytica to be used in U.S. elections, primarily the 2016 presidential campaign for the Republican candidate
- The data is used in ways that are not just similar to the way the Military uses propaganda/information psychological warfare, it's better...Pentagon and Russia apparently are both actively interested in understanding how it all works.
- On top of all that, undercover video clearly shows C.A. principles discussing illegal activities, fraud, etc., as related to how they can influence an election (you can look those up, they are damning).
So you (And WCH and some of the others), can clearly see that "data mining" is the tip of the proverbial iceberg. Facebook is the big criminal on that front. Business that "take advantage" of facebook, while immoral/unethical, are really showing the flaws in Facebook.
That's just a summary.