Former Obama Adviser: Big Tech and the Government Aren't Doing Enough
*By Madison Alworth*
Irish regulators have officially launched an investigation into Facebook's latest data breach ー one which could affect 50 million user accounts and is thought to be the single biggest hack of the company's network yet.
The country's Data Protection Commission will now decide whether to fine the social media giant, a penalty that could amount to as much as $1.63 billion.
For Dipayan Ghosh, a former adviser to President Obama and an ex-privacy policy exec at Facebook ($FB) itself, it's a move that should be emulated by U.S. authorities too.
"We do need the U.S. to be bringing forth these regulations for the digital age, because if we leave it to our international competitors, to jurisdictions outside of the United States, it's likely that they will set rules for Silicon Valley, which is an American industry, in a ways that is actually in their interest," Ghosh said in an interview with Cheddar this week.
Ghosh, currently a Pozen Fellow at Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics, and Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School, recently published a report titled, ["Digital Deceit: A Policy Agenda to Fight Disinformation on the Internet"](https://www.newamerica.org/public-interest-technology/reports/digital-deceit-ii/executive-summary/?mod=article_inline), in which he argued that tech companies are not only unequipped to properly regulate their content and users’ data, but they’re largely unwilling to do so.
"I think it's long and gone for the industry to take voluntary measures to move by itself and do something for the little guy, for the individual, for the consumer, for the voter," he said. "We have seen the industry have lots of opportunities to do that in the past, and it simply has not taken the right steps to protect the public interest."
Ghosh noted that big tech has been operating much like the Wild West, but U.S. lawmakers are getting wise, and the race to set regulation is on.
But the data breach is only one problem facing the company. News of the hack came only days after the departure of Instagram co-founders [Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger](https://cheddar.com/videos/instagram-co-founders-call-it-quits) from Facebook. Their exit signals a larger issue at the social media giant — and the timing is significant.
"For its founders to leave after a few years is incredible news. We imagine Facebook as a fantastic, huge technological force and innovative organization," Ghosh said. "And for these two key individuals to be leaving the company at this stage is pretty incredible. It suggests that they want to strike out new and find new opportunities for innovation."
Facebook has been struggling with one bad headline after another for months ー from the Cambridge Analytica scandal, to questionable ad targeting, to misuse of its platform around election. The stock had been able to withstand most of that until this summer. Since its last earnings report in July, shares have lost a full quarter of their value.
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/big-tech-has-big-problems).
Phyllis Newhouse, the first black woman to bring a company public via SPAC on the NYSE earlier this year, has launched her second SPAC, ShoulderUp Technology Acquisition.
Phyllis is a serial entrepreneur, retired military officer, and founder of the ShoulderUp movement, which educates and encourages women around the world to reach their greatest economic, political and cultural potential. Shawn Henry is part of the ShoulderUp team, bringing his expertise on cybersecurity to the new company. Both Phyllis and Shawn joined Cheddar to discuss this new venture and how it plans to tackle the issue of cybercrime.
Don Basile, CEO, Monsoon Blockchain & Founder of Bitcoin Latinum, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he explains why we're seeing major crypto investors look to purchase expensive pieces of art, and discusses what the NFT space could look like in the not-too-distant future.
Jack Constantine, chief digital officer and product inventor at Lush, joined Cheddar to talk about the cosmetic company's mass exodus from major social media platforms TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat, in the wake of recent reports that Instagram specifically had negative impacts on teen girls. He noted that with teenage girls being a large part of its consumer base and audience, Lush had a responsibility to market its company on outlets that prioritize mental wellbeing. "For us, we've always been a social brand, and it started to feel that social media was no longer offering what we felt we wanted to gain from it," he said. "And then obviously when you add that to the damage that it's causing, it just feels like a combination that we can't continue on with." The company also pulled out of social media platforms in 2019.
Jon Lowen, Co-Founder of Surfside, joined Wake Up With Cheddar's Baker Machado to discuss Uber's partnership with cannabis retailer Tokyo Smoke, as it's the first time a cannabis merchant has been listed on UberEats across all of its global markets.
Jack Dorsey resigned from his post as CEO of the social media company on Monday and will be replaced by chief technology officer Parag Agrawal. Mitch Rubin, portfolio manager at RiverPark Long/Short Opportunity Fund, joined Cheddar to break down the move and what it means for investors in both Twitter and Square, the payment company that Dorsey also helms. "For the long-term, I think this is very positive news for both companies," he said. Rubin also talked about growing competition in the social media space and why Twitter continues to lag behind other major players.
Jack Dorsey is officially out as Twitter's CEO. Dorsey said in a statement that the platform is ready to move away from its founders and now will be led by current CTO Parag Agrawal.
The ocean is an important topic when it comes to the climate. It plays a vital role in shaping our environment, with rising sea levels causing a 35% increase in natural disasters around the world, affecting 1.7 billion people. Dr. Sylvia Earle has been called perhaps the greatest advocate our oceans have ever had, with Time magazine dubbing her its first 'hero of the planet' and the Library of Congress naming her a living legend. She is also the founder of Mission Blue, an organization that inspires action to explore and protect the ocean. Dr. Earle joined Cheddar Climate for more on the importance of caring for the ocean and its impact on climate change.
