26.3 billion robocalls made in US last year 46 percent more than 2017

A newly released report compiled by Hiya, an app that monitors spam calls found that 26.3 billion robocalls were made to US phone numbers last year. This is a 46 percent rise from the 18 billion made in 2017.

The average person received 10 spam calls a month. The top area codes targeted were from Texas, with 214 Dallas, 817 Forth Worth, and 210 San Antonio at the top of the list.

Complaints to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)

Though the data is alarming, the FTC Commission on the Do-Not-Call registry, reported a decrease in filed complaints in 2018. During the period from October 2017 to September 2018 the registry received about 5.7 million complaints, with 3.8 being robocalls and another 1.9 million live callers. In 2017 there were 7.1 million complaints with 4.5 being robocalls.

Even though the total number of complaints went down the percentage of robocalls increased from about 63 percent of the total to 66 percent. The most common robocalls dealt with debt reduction, medical prescriptions, and impostors.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) claims it had more than 52,000 complaints about caller ID spoofing in 2016 alone. Wikipedia describes called ID spoofing as follows: "Caller ID spoofing is the practice of causing the telephone network to indicate to the receiver of a call that the originator of the call is a station other than the true originating station. For example, a caller ID display might display a phone number different from that of the telephone from which the call was placed. The term is commonly used to describe situations in which the motivation is considered malicious by the originator."

The Do-Not-Call registry has not helped stop robocalls

The Verge reports: "While the Do Not Call Registry was established in 2003, the volume of calls has still grown significantly in recent years. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) revealed to The Verge last year that it’s fielding an average of around 500,000 complaints a month over robocalls. The problem has led to some consumers filing lawsuits under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) if they receive calls when they’re listed on the Do Not Call Registry."

Attempts to solve problem

There has been some pressure on the US federal government to solve the problem. However both the FTC and the FCC had been affected by the partial government shutdown. However, a Senate bill has been introduced that could hit robocallers with a $10,000 fine for every robocall. In November 2018 Ajit Pai, FCC chair called on carriers to adopt the SHAKEN/STIR protocol which functions as a type of caller identification. T-Mobile has been the first US carrier to implement the protocol. On mobile phones users will see a "caller verified" notice in supported phones.

Previously published in DIgital Journal

US officials discuss fining Facebook a record amount over 22.5 million

US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) officials have been discussing the imposition of a record-setting fine on Facebook, according to the Washington Post. The fine would be for major data breaches and improper data sharing.

Facebook's privacy breaches

There was an agreement between Facebook and the US government back in 2012 that was to protect user's data and make clear statements about their privacy that may have been violated as well. Last spring it was revealed that data on over 87 million users had been given to Cambridge Analytica, a political consulting firm, without the users' explicit consent.

The UK has already fined Facebook last October to the tune of 500,000 pounds, a sum that is small compared to the amount being considered by US officials. The fine is equivalent to about $600,000 US and is being appealed by Facebook. The Washington Post claims that the US fine would be larger than the $22.5 that the FTC imposed on Google back in 2012 for tracking Apple Safari web browser users after it had promised it would not. On the appended video it is claimed that at least one analyst suggested the fine could be above a billion dollars!

In the 2012 agreement with the FTC, Facebook agreed that it had deceived users by telling them certain information would be kept private when it was not. The company had made such information as lists of friends and published posts, available to the public and this could be shared without the users' consent. The FTC probably now thinks the agreement not to continue to do this has been violated.

Following the Cambridge Analytica scandal and similar incidents, which included a hacker accessing personal information on 29 million accounts, both members of the US Congress and advocacy groups called on the FTC to take action against Facebook.

Free Press, a media and technology advocacy group said: “Serious consequences are the only way to curb Facebook’s predatory behavior and change the industry’s amoral pursuit of growth at the public’s expense. This action should be the first of many taken by regulators and Congress in response to online platforms’ systemic abuse of their users.”

Another commentator, Marc Rotenberg, the executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, said: “The agency now has the legal authority, the evidence, and the public support to act. There can be no excuse for further delay.”

Findings and fine have yet to be finalized

The Washington Post claims that the findings of the FTC investigation and the total amount of the fine are not yet finalized.

Facebook representatives have met with investigators from the FTC throughout last year. It is not clear if Facebook will accept the fine if and when FTC imposes it.

The FTC has been a victim of the partial US government shutdown with many of its non-essential employees being furloughed. The FTC made no comments when asked by the news source, The Verge, nor did Facebook. Facebook's actions and public statements are facing inquiries by several different federal agencies with respect to Facebook's mishandling of millions of users' personal files and data.

Previously published in Digital Journal

Faceook has recovered all its losses from the Cambridge Analytica data scandal

(May 10)Facebook has managed to recoup all of the losses that it had incurred in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica data scandal.

On Thursday Facebook shares hit an intraday high of $185.99 just above their closing price of $185.09 the last trading day before news of the scandal broke.

Facebook's shares plummeted after scandal news broke

On March 20 an article reported that Facebook share prices had dropped 9.5 percent in just two days. $49.6 billion had been wiped off the company's market cap. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) was investigating the company's use of personal data by the firm to see if it had "violated terms of a consent decree over its use of personal data". On Tuesday, after the announcement, the shares fell 2.9 percent.

The shares had fallen an even larger percentage on Monday, after the news that Cambridge Analytica had accessed data from 50 million Facebook users without their permission.

Facebook enters bear market territory

By March 26, Facebook was officially in bear market territory, down more than 20 percent from recent highs, and shares were at their lowest level since July of 2017. The FTC had confirmed that they were investigating Facebook's privacy policies. The probe sparked fears about government regulation and possible negative effects on the growth of the company. Facebook shares were now down 17 percent for the year to date.

The road to recovery

It has taken a while for Facebook shares to recover from such huge declines but after reporting blow-out first quarter earnings sentiment changed, helped by the fact that the feared drop in users of Facebook had yet to happen. Many analysts also do not believe that the increased regulation expected from Europe will actually come to pass. Company fortunes appear to have recovered from the significant harm that the scandal caused it at first.

Now Facebook shares are up 2.36 percent for this year so far.

Previously published in Digital Journal