Social media companies engaged in “vast surveillance” of users

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A Federal Trade Commission staff report released Thursday found that nine leaders in the social media and video streaming industry, including Meta and X, conducted “vast surveillance” of consumers to monetize their personal information.

Not only did companies capitalize off of users’ data, the report alleged, but they also failed to protect consumers, including minors, and used collection, minimization and retention practices that were “woefully inadequate.”

“While lucrative for the companies, these surveillance practices can endanger people’s privacy, threaten their freedoms, and expose them to a host of harms, from identify theft to stalking,” FTC Chair Lina Khan said in a statement.

She continued: “Several firms’ failure to adequately protect kids and teens online is especially troubling.”

The study, which began nearly four years ago, is based on responses from orders issued in December 2020 to nine companies operating 13 different social media and video streaming services.

The orders requested data on each company’s operations between 2019 and 2020.

None of the companies reported sharing practices that treat teen users’ data differently than that of adults, the study found.

“This shows that any privacy protections that were present for children … disappeared the moment that child turned thirteen,” the report said.

The report also alleged some companies engaged in “willful blindness” around users under the age of 13.

While most companies said their platforms weren’t intended for users under 13 and that they did not knowingly have any data collected from children, the report contended there is evidence children are using the platforms.

In June, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy called on Congress to require social media platforms to use warning labels to alert users of the risks social media can pose to teens’ mental health.

His call and the FTC’s report come amid a time of increased focus on the impact social media can have on teen mental health, with several studies linking social media use to increased depression among teenagers.