FB data theft culprit Cambridge Analytica announces closure
BY Agencies3 May 2018 11:53 PM IST
Agencies4 May 2018 5:26 AM IST
London: Cambridge Analytica, the embattled UK-based data consulting firm that worked on Donald Trump's election campaign, has shut down citing a loss of business amidst a raging scandal that it compromised the personal information of 87 million Facebook users, including that of over 500,000 Indians.
The company is accused of mapping the behaviour of voters in the run-up to the 2016 US election won by Trump.
In a statement, Cambridge Analytica said it would immediately cease operations and bankruptcy proceedings would soon begin.
The decision was made less than two months after Cambridge Analytica, and Facebook became embroiled in the scandal. Revelations about the misuse of data plunged Facebook into crisis and prompted regulators to open investigations.
Cambridge Analytica denies any wrongdoing but says that the negative media coverage has left it with no clients and mounting legal fees which have forced it to resort to closure.
"Despite Cambridge Analytica's unwavering confidence that its employees have acted ethically and lawfully, the siege of media coverage has driven away virtually all of the company's customers and suppliers," the company said in a statement.
"As a result, it has been determined that it is no longer viable to continue operating the business, which left Cambridge Analytica with no realistic alternative to placing the company into administration," it added.
US-based social media giant Facebook has said that nearly 5.62 lakh people in India were "potentially affected" by its global data breach involving Cambridge Analytica.
Next Story