The Latest: Facebook CEO declares ‘the future is private’

SAN JOSE, Calif. – The Latest on Mark Zuckerberg’s keynote speech at Facebook’s annual developers conference (all times local):

10:30 a.m.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is declaring at the social networking company’s biggest conference of the year that the “future is private.”

Zuckerberg is using the Tuesday keynote address to sum up his plan to turn Facebook and its related services into the equivalent of digital living room where people can share things in more private ways than they currently can on Facebook’s main social network, now populated by more than 2.2 billion users.

Zuckerberg launched this new emphasis earlier this year as Facebook tries to recover from a series of huge privacy lapses that have rocked the company over the past 15 months. It continues to run a highly profitable business built on collecting personal information from its users so it can sell ads targeted to their interests.

But Facebook has acknowledged its inability to protect its users privacy could result in a $3 billion to $5 billion fine by the Federal Trade Commission.

___

1:45 a.m.

CEO Mark Zuckerberg will kick off Facebook’s annual F8 conference Tuesday with what are expected to be more details about his new “privacy-focused” vision for the social network.

He’ll also likely do his best to bat away Facebook’s growing array of critics, emboldened regulators and competitors. Zuckerberg and his lieutenant Sheryl Sandberg have apologized repeatedly over the past year for an array of mishaps over privacy, data misuse and security problems.

Last week, the company said it is setting aside $3 billion to cover a possible fine from the Federal Trade Commission over privacy violations. Facebook has also suffered hacks, allowed hate speech and live-streamed mass-shooting horror.

Zuckerberg is likely to focus on Facebook’s future by emphasizing private messaging, Facebook’s role in “communities,” and harnessing artificial intelligence to improve discourse.

Join the Conversation!

Want to share your thoughts, add context, or connect with others in your community? Create a free account to comment on stories, ask questions, and join meaningful discussions on our new site.

Leave a Reply

More Articles