Cambridge Analytica: Watchdog concludes three-year information misuse inquiry

A 3-year investigation into the misuse of private information for political campaigning has been concluded, the Info Commissioner has mentioned.

The probe, centred across the actions of consulting agency Cambridge Analytica, led to huge fines for Fb and two pro-Brexit marketing campaign teams, Vote Go away and Go away.EU.

Elizabeth Denham mentioned the watchdog had accomplished its “primary strains of inquiry”.

It had discovered “systemic vulnerabilities in our democratic techniques”, she warned.

Cambridge Analytica was accused of amassing the info of thousands and thousands of Fb customers with out their consent and utilizing it in political campaigns, together with the 2016 US Presidential marketing campaign and 2016 Brexit referendum.

The ICO seized supplies from the now defunct agency’s headquarters throughout a high-profile search in 2018.

The investigation led to the agency’s collapse and its boss, Alexander Nix, being banned from being a director for seven years by the Insolvency Service.

The regulator fined Fb a report £500,000 penalty for not doing sufficient to guard its customers from their information being “harvested” for political functions, a failing which it mentioned brought about a “severe danger of hurt”.

Vote Go away, the principle pro-Brexit marketing campaign group whose supporters included Boris Johnson and Michael Gove, was fined £40,000 for sending out virtually 200,000 unsolicited textual content messages within the run-up to the 2016 vote.

And Go away.EU, the Arron-Banks led group which additionally campaigned to exit the EU, paid a £15,000 positive for illegal advertising and marketing in relation to emails despatched to its subscribers and people of Eldon Insurance coverage, one other agency run by Mr Banks.

As a part of its wider inquiry, parenting recommendation web site Emma’s Diary was fined £140,000 after it was accused of illegally gathering information and promoting it on to be used by the Labour Social gathering, which used it to profile new moms.

‘Systemic vulnerabilities’

In a letter to the Tradition and Media Choose Committee, Ms Denham mentioned the investigation has offered “new understanding about using private information within the trendy political context and has remodeled the best way information safety authorities around the globe regulate information use for political functions”.

“The place there was proof of breaches of the regulation, now we have acted. And the place now we have discovered no proof of illegalities, now we have shared this overtly.

“This additional work confirms my earlier conclusion that there are systemic vulnerabilities in our democratic techniques.”

The regulator mentioned it had seen proof that Cambridge Analytica and its guardian firm SCL Elections had been drawing up plans to relocate its information offshore to keep away from regulatory scrutiny however was unable to take action earlier than it ceased buying and selling.

On the broader situation of the integrity of the 2016 referendum, the regulator mentioned it had not recognized any “important breaches” of the privateness and digital advertising and marketing laws or information safety laws by both Stay or Go away teams “which met the edge for formal regulatory motion”.

Ms Denham mentioned whereas the query of alleged Russian interference within the 2016 vote was outdoors the remit of the inquiry, the regulator had not discovered “any further proof” of Russian involvement in its evaluation of fabric contained in laptop servers seized from Cambridge Analytica and SCL Elections.

The watchdog mentioned its probe had led to an enchancment in how political events deal with private information.

It mentioned an audit of events’ compliance with the principles had been accomplished and can be revealed shortly and its steerage for events on political campaigning would even be up to date.