*By Alisha Haridasani*
Facebook said it will resume its process of reviewing third-party apps using new, tighter controls after the Cambridge Analytica scandal revealed holes in the social network's data privacy protocols.
“We’re going to be taking a higher level of expectation when we look at your applications,” said Ime Archibong, Facebook’s vice president of product partnerships, in his keynote speech Wednesday at Facebook’s annual developers' conference.
Facebook also announced that it will restrict the amount of data that apps have access to and enable users to see exactly what data is being used by third-party apps, or more easily delete apps they no longer use.
Facebook halted its review of all outside apps after it was revealed that users' data had been mishandled by a third-party app and shared with the research firm Cambridge Analytica.
The decision to suspend reviews ー and the changes ー frustrated some developers, who said their businesses was disrupted. But Archibong told Cheddar's Alex Heath in an interview Wednesday that most developers understand in “the long run that’s the right thing to do.”
“Facebook’s making these changes not because we’re trying to be hard or add more friction or be disruptive to the building process but truly to ensure that people trust the products that we’re building,” Archibong said.
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/behind-the-curtain-at-facebooks-f8-conference).
Social media platform TikTok was the most visited website in 2021, topping Google, Facebook, Microsoft, and Apple, according to IT security company Cloudflare.
AdTheorent just the latest company to go public via a SPAC. The company specializes in digital advertising, using AI and machine learning as a tool to move marketing forward. AdTheorent to close its SPAC merger with MCAP Acquisition today and will trade on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol ADTH. CEO Jim Lawson spoke with Cheddar ahead of the move.
Although still early in development, blockchain technology, Web3, also known as Web 3.0 has been getting a lot of attention from some top tech names lately. Web3 is based on blockchain technology, which powers NFT’s and cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin. With Web3, users would ideally control their own data, rather than have it be controlled by a few large companies. But, Tesla CEO Elon musk isn't buying into Web3 just yet, tweeting over the weekend that the decentralized iteration of the internet seems more like a marketing "buzzword" right now than reality. Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey also chiming in to the conversation, expressing doubt over whether or not Web3 would actually be decentralized if ownership still belonged to venture capital firms. Parker McCurley, co-founder & CEO of Decent Labs explains the significance of Web3 catching the eye of the tech giants, and what Web3 could mean for the future of the internet.
Carlo and Baker cover the heartening news on the Covid front ahead of the holiday, plus President Biden punting student loan repayments again, a new space telescope and Love, Hate, Ate: Christmas Eve Eve Edition!
This year's worldwide semiconductor shortage limited the supply of everything from new cars to smartphones; and now, many in the chip industry expect the shortage to continue deep into 2022, and maybe even 2023. Semiconductor senior research analyst for Robert W. Baird & Co., Tristan Gerra, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
