Facebook suspends Cambridge Analytica – firm associated with Uhuru’s Election

Facebook has suspended Cambridge Analytica, a political data mining firm that is claimed to have made ads used by President Uhuru Kenyatta ahead of the 2017 elections.

Facebook Inc said on Friday that it was suspending Strategic Communication Laboratories (SCL), and its branch, Cambridge Analytica after they were found in violation of rules.

Facebook explained that a University of Cambridge psychology professor, Dr. Aleksandr Kogan, created an app which asked users to answer questions to build a psychological profile.

“The professor lied and violated the platform’s policies by allowing data passage from an app that was using Facebook Login to SCL/Cambridge Analytica, a firm that does political, government and military work around the globe. He also passed that data to Christopher Wylie of Eunoia Technologies, Inc,” the statement said.

According to Facebook, approximately 270,000 people downloaded the app, and gave consent for Kogan to access information such as the city they set on their profile or content they had liked, among others.”

Unknowingly, they gave their consent for Kogan to access information such as the city they set on their profile, or content they had liked, as well as more limited information about friends who had their privacy settings set to allow it,” Facebook said.

The statement also notes that Cambridge Analytica, Kogan and Wylie affirmed that they deleted the data, but some of it was found a few days ago.

Ahead of the 2017 elections, President Uhuru’s party, Jubilee is claimed to have contracted the services of Cambridge Analytica to manage part of its campaign.

The same firm is hailed for helping the US President, Donald Trump, to win the elections. It is also credited with helping the Leave side to win in the Brexit referendum in the UK in June 2017.

Jubilee Party has neither denied nor accepted the use of the firm. In fact, in September 2017, the former US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton called Kenya’s annulled presidential election “a project” of Cambridge Analytica.

Cambridge Analytica has refuted the claims and saying it was not involved in any negative political content.