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Facebook Expands Security Measures to Improve Brand Image
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Facebook’s attempt to regain its brand image is evident from the recent removal of more than 270 accounts and pages operated by the Russian organization, Internet Research Agency (IRA), which were aimed at influencing the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
Per the blog post by CEO Mark Zuckerberg, the organization was “using complex networks of fake accounts to deceive people” in Russia and Russian-speaking people of neighboring countries like Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan and Ukraine.
Facebook claimed that more than a million people followed at least one of the Facebook pages controlled by IRA and around 500k followed at least one of their Instagram accounts. The company is also working on a tool that will help users identify if they liked or followed an IRA-operated account.
In a separate blog post, the company announced that it will provide users with more background information regarding a publisher or an article, as well as additional features to help them determine “what to read, trust and share” on News Feed.
Data Scandal Hurting Brand Image
Facebook has been severely criticized following revelations that data analytics firm Cambridge Analytica, which had ties to the Trump campaign, gained inappropriate access to data of more than 50 million Facebook users.
The news sparked broader concerns about data privacy and security issues on the platform. The incident not only grabbed the attention of government regulators worldwide but also drew criticism from the likes of Apple CEO Tim Cook.
Shares of Facebook suffered a bloodbath at trading in the days following the incident. The issue took a further ugly turn with WhatsApp co-founder Brian Acton’s tweet requesting his followers to delete Facebook.
In addition, deletion of Facebook pages of both Tesla (TSLA - Free Report) and Space also dampened investors’ confidence.
Notably, Facebook has gained 10.1% in the past year, underperforming the industry’s 10.8% rally.
Facebook Takes Corrective Steps
Facebook’s efforts to plug security loopholes as well as limit fake news will eventually help it regain trust, in our view.
The CEO believes the current move to be “an important step to protect the integrity of elections around the world”. Notably, in order to remove fake accounts ahead of the 2018 elections across various countries, the company is rolling out Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools in all languages.
Facebook is also making significant investments to strengthen security on its platform. The company currently has 15K people working on security and content review and expects to expand it to more than 20k by this year end.
Moreover, the social media giant is focusing on building strong “community” at the expense of lower engagement level over the next few quarters. The tweak in its platform to prevent false news, hate speech and other abusive content is crucial for expanding its user base over the long run.
Long-term earnings growth rate for Paycom and NVIDIA is projected to be 24.8% and 10.3%, respectively.
Wall Street’s Next Amazon
Zacks EVP Kevin Matras believes this familiar stock has only just begun its climb to become one of the greatest investments of all time. It’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity to invest in pure genius.
Image: Bigstock
Facebook Expands Security Measures to Improve Brand Image
Facebook’s attempt to regain its brand image is evident from the recent removal of more than 270 accounts and pages operated by the Russian organization, Internet Research Agency (IRA), which were aimed at influencing the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
Per the blog post by CEO Mark Zuckerberg, the organization was “using complex networks of fake accounts to deceive people” in Russia and Russian-speaking people of neighboring countries like Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan and Ukraine.
Facebook claimed that more than a million people followed at least one of the Facebook pages controlled by IRA and around 500k followed at least one of their Instagram accounts. The company is also working on a tool that will help users identify if they liked or followed an IRA-operated account.
In a separate blog post, the company announced that it will provide users with more background information regarding a publisher or an article, as well as additional features to help them determine “what to read, trust and share” on News Feed.
Data Scandal Hurting Brand Image
Facebook has been severely criticized following revelations that data analytics firm Cambridge Analytica, which had ties to the Trump campaign, gained inappropriate access to data of more than 50 million Facebook users.
The news sparked broader concerns about data privacy and security issues on the platform. The incident not only grabbed the attention of government regulators worldwide but also drew criticism from the likes of Apple CEO Tim Cook.
Shares of Facebook suffered a bloodbath at trading in the days following the incident. The issue took a further ugly turn with WhatsApp co-founder Brian Acton’s tweet requesting his followers to delete Facebook.
In addition, deletion of Facebook pages of both Tesla (TSLA - Free Report) and Space also dampened investors’ confidence.
Notably, Facebook has gained 10.1% in the past year, underperforming the industry’s 10.8% rally.
Facebook Takes Corrective Steps
Facebook’s efforts to plug security loopholes as well as limit fake news will eventually help it regain trust, in our view.
The CEO believes the current move to be “an important step to protect the integrity of elections around the world”. Notably, in order to remove fake accounts ahead of the 2018 elections across various countries, the company is rolling out Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools in all languages.
Facebook is also making significant investments to strengthen security on its platform. The company currently has 15K people working on security and content review and expects to expand it to more than 20k by this year end.
Moreover, the social media giant is focusing on building strong “community” at the expense of lower engagement level over the next few quarters. The tweak in its platform to prevent false news, hate speech and other abusive content is crucial for expanding its user base over the long run.
Facebook, Inc. Revenue (TTM)
Facebook, Inc. Revenue (TTM) | Facebook, Inc. Quote
Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider
Facebook carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Some better-ranked stocks in the broader technology sector include Paycom Software (PAYC - Free Report) and NVIDIA Corporation (NVDA - Free Report) , both sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks Rank #1 stocks here.
Long-term earnings growth rate for Paycom and NVIDIA is projected to be 24.8% and 10.3%, respectively.
Wall Street’s Next Amazon
Zacks EVP Kevin Matras believes this familiar stock has only just begun its climb to become one of the greatest investments of all time. It’s a once-in-a-generation opportunity to invest in pure genius.
Click for details >>