Democracy, privacy under fire in Facebook era

If Big Brother isn’t watching you, Facebook may well be — and with your willing consent.

Reports from two, highly reputable newspapers allege that private information from about 50 million people was harvested through Facebook, then improperly used by a private analytics firm to influence the 2016 American presidential election and the Brexit vote.

If true, this represents a flagrant violation of the trust and privacy rights of millions of individuals.

Just as frightening, it poses an existential threat to democracy, a form of government built on a foundation of fair elections.

It’s some comfort to know Facebook’s leaders are being called to testify before political committees in the United States and United Kingdom.

Fearful about how their private information might be misused, Canadians can feel reassured to know a federal privacy investigation into the social-media, social-networking giant is being launched in this country.

But none of this allays the legitimate fears that social media are being used in anti-social, indeed, destructive ways against the people and societies they’re supposed to serve.

According to recent reports from The New York Times and The Observer of London, Cambridge Analytica, a political data firm founded by billionaire Republican donor Robert Mercer, launched a personality-test app on Facebook.

Cambridge Analytica went on to mine the personal information of 270,000 people who answered the questionnaire, along with information about tens of millions of the respondents’ Facebook “friends.”

Armed with this data, Cambridge Analytica reportedly used it to influence American voters to elect Donald Trump, and U.K. voters to leave the European Union.

There is still much we do not know about what appears to be a blatant, clandestine effort to manipulate voters.

The data, sadly, was a reflection of the Facebook users’ true selves. But it’s clear Facebook did not tell the users whose data had been collected what had happened. This lack of disclosure is improper — and possibly illegal in Britain and many American states.

Facebook promotes itself as a way to connect people, foster bonds and create “friends” in a way that has never before been possible. More than one billion people use it each day.

Many, though far from all of these users, realize the company profits from their information by sharing it with advertisers who use it to sell products.

Even so, those who use Facebook are assured their privacy is respected. Whatever Facebook’s excuse may be, this doesn’t appear to have happened in the case of Cambridge Analytica.

Lawmakers in many countries will be considering tougher regulations for Facebook and other social media companies. Bravo. Facebook shouldn’t be too big to tackle.

But the revelations of the past few days should serve as a cautionary tale for our times.

Democracy is being challenged by the rise of new dictators, populism and fears about globalization.

Yet social media, which can bolster democracy by connecting voters and promoting healthy discussion, are also undermining it. They are a force for evil, as well as good.

And the enemies are not just trolls toiling away in Russia but apparently other people, far closer to home.