Days after the BJP and the Congress traded charges of using services of London-based data firm Cambridge Analytica (CA), accused of unduly influencing elections in various countries, the Government has initiated a high-level probe into the analytics carried out by the social media and internet giants, including Facebook, to prevent misuse of available user data and any possible manipulation of voting behaviour or pattern in the country.
Expressing serious concern over the possible manipulation of the user data by the companies, including artificial jacking up of followers, the Government has ordered an investigation to figure out the algorithm or methods used to manipulate available information. “This is something that will not be tolerated and thus a comprehensive review of data analytics carried out by internet companies and their vendors has been initiated,” sources said. (An algorithm usually means a small procedure that solves a recurrent problem.)
While accusing the Congress of taking services of the controversial firm CA, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad had in last two days warned of strict action against any dubious practice to manipulate users’ data to influence election results in India.
In this context, the Minister had said even Facebook Chief MarkZuckerberg could be summoned if anything fishy found in CA’s manipulation of the data available on FB. The FB is estimated to have 241 million active users in India.
The Government would like to ensure that social media giants have adequate firewalls to ward off data harvesting.
The CA is in the eye of storm with the BJP and the Congress accusing each other of making use of services for their respective poll strategies. The controversy has
taken a political turn with the next year’s Lok Sabha poll coming closer.