Zuckerberg has admitted a mistake after 87 million users had their data shared
Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook feudal lord, has admitted that up to 87 million people could be affected by the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
The majority of those 87 million are based in the United States but 1,079,031 UK users have had their data shared improperly, the tech company said.
And if you’re one of those people, you could be entitled to up to £12,500 of compensation.
As previously reported, law professor Maureen Mapp said: “Assuming each person brought a claim for compensation for distress caused by the data breach…each individual may be awarded £12,500 as damages.”
David Barda, a data protection lawyer for Slater and Gordon reckons the amount would be less.
He said: “I think a much more realistic figure is £500 per claimant.
“The amount of compensation will depend on the level of distress suffered, but Facebook could be facing claims of up to £500 per Facebook user if those users were able to demonstrate their distress.”
Zuckerberg admitted the extent of the problem in a rare call with journalists. He said: “We didn’t take a broad enough view of what our responsibility is. That was a huge mistake. It was my mistake.
“I think life is about learning from your mistakes and working out what you need to do to move forward.
“When you’re building something like Facebook that is unprecedented in the world there are going to be things you mess up.”
Mr Zuckerberg said that the 87 million figure, which Facebook published buried deep into a blog post, was “the maximum number” thought possible but admitted “we don’t actually know” the true total.
