A district attorney general added Mark Zuckerberg as a plaintiff in a Facebook privacy case.
This lawsuit was filed in 2018 for the benefit of those affected by the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
Zuckerberg could be facing severe financial penalties.
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Karl Racine, the attorney general of the District of Columbia has named Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook CEO, as a respondent in a privacy suit against the company.
Racine told The New York Times that he intended to add Zuckerberg to the ongoing case against Facebook, which was filed in 2018 for DC residents whose data had been compromised by the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
Facebook tried to dismiss the lawsuit, but a judge refused in January 2019. This led to a discovery period.
"Based on the evidence that we have gathered over the past two year and the District's general investigation, it's evident Mr. Zuckerberg knew and actively participated in each decision that lead to Cambridge Analytica mass collection of Facebook user information and Facebook's misrepresentations about how secure their data were," Racine stated to Insider in a statement.
"The evidence further shows that Mr. Zuckerberg also participated and misled the public as well as government officials regarding Facebook's role." In these circumstances, Mr. Zuckerberg must be held responsible for his participation in the decisions that allowed millions of users to see their data. He also stated that we are adding him to the complaint.
Insider was given a copy by Racine's office of the amended complaint.
Zuckerberg could face financial penalties if he is found guilty of the complaint. Facebook could appeal against the change.
Insider was told by Racine's office that it could seek $5,000 for each resident affected by the Cambridge Analytica scandal. Racine stated in his 2018 original filing that 340,000 Washington DC residents were at risk, but The Times reported that 300,000.
This could lead to a maximum penalty up to $1.7 trillion. Insider was told by Racine's office that Zuckerberg and Facebook would face the same violations if they are found guilty. This would mean that Zuckerberg would be personally responsible for the same amount as Facebook.
The Times reported that Facebook could try to have Racine's amended dismissed. Insider contacted Facebook to find out if it would dismiss the amendment. Facebook did not respond immediately.
In July 2019, Facebook settled with the Federal Trade Commission for $5 billion over its failures to protect user privacy during the Cambridge Analytica scandal. The Washington Post reported that the FTC considered a higher fine and the possibility of holding Zuckerberg personally liable in July 2019.
In September, Facebook shareholders filed a lawsuit against it claiming that it had overpaid the Federal Trade Commission nearly $5 billion in a "quid proquo" to keep Zuckerberg safe.
