Heller says daughter had Facebook data harvested

WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Dean Heller’s daughter was among an unknown number of Nevadans whose Facebook information was harvested and used by a political data company, the senator says.

While questioning Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Tuesday during a hearing before the Senate Judiciary and Commerce committees, Heller, R-nev., revealed that his daughter and six staff members were among the 87 million users who had their data harvested.

In answering Heller’s questions, Zuckerberg said he did not know the number of Nevadans impacted by Cambridge Analytica’s improper access to the data, but he promised to provide a breakdown. He also repeatedly apologized for Facebook’s handling of personal data that allowed a researcher to harvest and sell the information to Cambridge Analytica. He said the social media company is taking measures to prevent similar incidents.

Lawmakers still took him to task for not moving quicker to protect users and their data.

“I appreciate you being here. I appreciate the apology, but stop apologizing and let’s make the change,” said Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-nev.

Cortez Masto, a former Nevada attorney general, said if Facebook had acted on a 2011 Federal Trade Commission consent decree in which the company agreed to warn users before sharing their information, “we wouldn’t be here today talking about Cambridge Analytica.”