FTC to investigate Facebook's privacy policies: 4 things to know

The Federal Trade Commission will investigate how Facebook protects its users' data, the agency said March 26.

Here are four things to know about the investigation.

1. Tom Pahl, acting director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, said, "The FTC takes very seriously recent press reports raising substantial concerns about the privacy practices of Facebook."

2. The FTC is not the only organization questioning how Facebook manages its users' data after reports data collection firm Cambridge Analytica accessed the personal information of 50 million-plus Facebook users.

3. Republican Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley, also chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, asked Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to testify about the company's privacy rules in April. In addition, 37 attorneys general penned a letter to Mr. Zuckerberg requesting more information about Facebook's privacy policies, according to The New York Times.

4. Facebook stock fell as much as 6.5 percent March 26 following the FTC's announcement, before rebounding. Facebook said the week of March 19 it was expecting the FTC to investigate its privacy policies.

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