Leaked memo: Facebook does not control its data-sharing practices

Facebook is beginning to realize how little control it has over its ability to regulate data collection and ad operation.

A recently leaked internal memo from Facebook revealed that the company has no idea where its user data are going or what it is doing with them. This revelation could complicate the company's future as a growing number of countries attempt to regulate and protect user privacy and digital ad sales.

“We do not have an adequate level of control and explainability over how our systems use data, and thus we can’t confidently make controlled policy changes or external commitments such as ‘we will not use X data for Y purpose,’" Facebook's privacy engineers wrote in a 2021 memo, according to Motherboard. "And yet, this is exactly what regulators expect us to do."