Swiss Group That’s Supposed To Oversee Privacy For Libra Says It Hasn’t Heard From Facebook At All

CNBC ^ | 07/18/19 | Elizabeth Schulze

[Enlightened1]

• David Marcus, the head of Facebook’s digital currency project, says during a hearing in the U.S. Senate on Tuesday that authorities in Switzerland will oversee data and privacy protections for its new cryptocurrency, Libra.
• But a spokesperson for the Swiss agency, the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner, says it has not yet been contacted by Facebook.
• Several senators who questioned Marcus on Tuesday express concern over Facebook’s reputation with data privacy.

 

Facebook said on Tuesday that Switzerland’s data protection agency will oversee data and privacy protections for its new cryptocurrency, Libra.

But Facebook hasn’t reached out to the Swiss regulator, a spokesman for the agency told CNBC.

 

In his testimony before the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday, David Marcus, the head of Facebook’s digital currency project, said, “For the purposes of data and privacy protections, the Swiss Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC) will be the Libra Association’s privacy regulator.”

Asked about the agency’s role regulating Libra, Hugo Wyler, head of communication at the FDPIC, said in a statement to CNBC:

“We have taken note of the statements made by David Marcus, Chief of Calibra, on our potential role as data protection supervisory authority in the Libra context. Until today we have not been contacted by the promoters of Libra,” Wyler said. “We expect Facebook or its promoters to provide us with concrete information when the time comes. Only then will we be able to examine the extent to which our legal advisory and supervisory competence is given. In any case, we are following the development of the project in the public debate.”

A Facebook spokesperson confirmed that the company hasn’t yet met with the FDPIC.

[Enlightened1]

A company as large as Facebook lying to the Senate is simply more validation that Facebook should be broken and regulated like AT&T in 1984.

Facebook is a lot bigger than AT&T in 1984.

[butlerweave]

Give your real money to Facebook and they’ll hand you useless Tokens

[Moltke]

Yeah well, Facebook will just BUY the whole of Switzerland and FORCE them to oversee their Libra project...

[DUMBGRUNT]

Give your real money to Facebook and they’ll hand you useless Tokens

How does that differ from a typical saving account?

You give them greenbacks, and you receive a ‘statement’.

Also note, the greenback is not what it used to be.

[Tallguy]

Sure. Let a “seat-of-the-pants” outfit with anti-conservative policies create a new currency? What could possibly go wrong?

Get banned for a week and no economic transactions are allowed? Miss your mortgage payment? Too bad for you, Mr./Ms. Conservative.