Edeson Online News: Facebook Suspends Another Data Firm, Crimson Hexagon

Monday 23 July 2018

Facebook Suspends Another Data Firm, Crimson Hexagon

Facebook has suspended a US-based analytics firm while it investigates concerns about the collection and sharing of user data. Crimson Hexagon, based in Boston, describes itself as offering “consumer insights” and has contracts with government agencies around the world.
Facebook said it was looking into whether some of these deals were in violation of its policies on surveillance.

The network said it had not found any evidence so far that data had been improperly obtained.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Crimson Hexagon has "contracts to analyse public Facebook data for clients including a Russian nonprofit with ties to the Kremlin and multiple US government agencies”.

In March 2017, Facebook prohibited user data being used for government surveillance following pressure from civil liberties groups concerned about the targeting of dissidents and protesters.
"We don't allow developers to build surveillance tools using information from Facebook or Instagram,” a Facebook spokesman said in a statement on Friday. "We take these allegations seriously, and we have suspended these apps while we investigate.”

Crimson Hexagon works with a data set that includes, according to its own website, more than one trillion social media posts take from Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and others. It boasts of being able to analyse more than 160m photographs posted online every day.

In a blog entry posted by the firm on Friday, its chief technology officer Chris Bingham defended the company’s work - without specifically mentioning Facebook’s investigation.

"Crimson Hexagon only collects publicly available social media data that anyone can access,” he wrote, seeking to distance his firm from Cambridge Analytica, the firm which allegedly used an app to scrape private data from the network.

As well as government work, Crimson Hexagon has had deals with commercial companies including Adidas, Samsung and the BBC.

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FACEBOOK COMMENTS

Wonders Okpor and 8 others

Romoke Adegbuyi

Nah wah o

Endy Edeson

Romoke, what do you mean by Na wa ooo ?

Emeka Falake

Cambridge Analytical almost brought Facebook down,

Browayson John Sr.

Issues just keep creeping in on this poor young lad, if na naija now dem go say na him village peepoo dey conjur all these. Be strong Mark

Endy Edeson

@John: Hahahahahahaha. In America, nothing like village people. I don't also believe in the village people juju but one has to be very careful with the folks there. That being said, being at the helm of affairs of a big company like FACEBOOK is not a "mere stroll in the pack". The young lad, Zuckerberg is working round the clock to make sure that everything is working out fine but some "BRAINY" people would want to hack and develop programs not inline with his social media. That is why he is clamping down on them. I like the way they respond to him in respect. They are always denying any wrong doing. Like Crimson Hexason, I pity them and I pray they are not found guilty. Most of their services is on Facebook which they take pride for their clients.