Tech Desk 
Sep 19, 2024
A few renowned social media platforms are currently collecting, sharing, and processing users' information with a little manipulation such as over how it is utilised by systems integrating artificial intelligence (AI), according to a report by the United States (US) Federal Trade Commission.
FTC further reported that the collection of personal data has endangered user’s privacy and posed a great threat to it, as some significantly reliable Meta Platforms, ByteDance's TikTok, Amazon's gaming platform Twitch, and more are claimed to be managing the data, halting the data management and other policies at several platforms were "woefully inadequate."
Users might be amazed to know that the FTC reported that a few platforms including YouTube, social media platform X, Snap, Discord and Reddit are also involved in collecting data. These companies strategically collect data through cutting-edge technology which is seamlessly utilised in online advertising and purchasing personal information from information brokers.
Read more: LinkedIn training AI model on user data without consent
FTC Chair Lina Khan stated: "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 identity theft to stalking."
Data privacy is considered as an extremely sensitive issue, and it must be addressed to ensure the user’s utmost protection, especially for young users engaged in these platforms. Currently, the US House of Representatives is pondering bills passed by the Senate back in July centralised on addressing the influence of social media over the younger ones.
Recently, Meta introduced teen accounts integrating improvised parental controls. “Companies gathered data on individuals who did not use their services, and some were not able to identify all of the ways they collected and used data.” the FTC added.
