Heller’s daughter among Nevadans affected by Facebook data sharing

WASHINGTON — Nevada Sen. Dean Heller’s daughter was among an unknown number of Nevadans whose Facebook information was harvested and used by a political data company, the senator says.

While questioning Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Tuesday during a hearing before the Senate Judiciary and Commerce committees, Heller, R-Nev., revealed that his daughter was among the 87 million users whose data was harvested.

He said six members of his staff also received notices from Facebook informing them that their personal information was obtained by the British firm, Cambridge Analytica, hired by President Donald Trump’s 2016 election campaign.

Heller was referring to notices that Facebook began sending Tuesday to people whose profiles were improperly harvested by Cambridge Analytica, which sold the data to groups and campaigns to target and sway potential voters.

In answering Heller’s questions, Zuckerberg said he did not know the number of Nevadans impacted by the firm’s improper access to the data but promised to provide a breakdown. He also repeatedly apologized for Facebook’s handling of personal data that allowed a researcher to harvest and sell the information to Cambridge Analytica and said the social media company is taking measures to prevent similar incidents from occurring.

Lawmakers still took him to task for not moving quicker to protect users and their data.

“I appreciate you being here. I appreciate the apology but stop apologizing and let’s make the change,” said Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev.

Cortez Masto, a former Nevada attorney general, said if Facebook had acted on a 2011 Federal Trade Commission consent decree in which the company agreed to warn users before sharing their information. “We wouldn’t be here today talking about Cambridge Analytica.”

“And that is our concern,” Cortez Masto said. “That is what I’m saying now … it’s time to really address the privacy issues.”

Zuckerberg was testifying again Wednesday before the House Energy and Commerce Committee.

Contact Gary Martin at gmartin@reviewjournal.com or 202-662-7390. Follow @garymartindc on Twitter.