Facebook cuts ties to data brokers in blow to targeted ads

Facebook Inc said on Wednesday it would end its partnerships with several large data brokers who help advertisers target people on the social network. FILE PHOTO | NMG 

By REUTERS

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Summary

• World’s largest social media company is under pressure to improve its handling of data.
• The company adjusted the privacy settings on its service on Wednesday.
• This gives users control over their personal information in fewer taps.

Facebook Inc said on Wednesday it would end its partnerships with several large data brokers who help advertisers target people on the social network.

The step follows a scandal over how Facebook handles personal information.

The world’s largest social media company is under pressure to improve its handling of data after disclosing that information about 50 million Facebook users wrongly ended up in the hands of political consultancy Cambridge Analytica.

READ: Cambridge Analytica scam puts Kenya’s data laws on the spot

Facebook adjusted the privacy settings on its service on Wednesday, giving users control over their personal information in fewer taps.

Facebook has for years given advertisers the option of targeting their ads based on data collected by companies such as Acxiom Corp and Experian PLC.

Widely used

The tool has been widely used among certain categories of advertisers - such as automakers, luxury goods producers and consumer packaged goods companies - who do not sell directly to consumers and have relatively little information about who their customers are, according to Facebook.