UK: Investigators allowed to search Cambridge Analytica

By Muhammad Mussa
LONDON (AA) - A U.K. judge on Friday issued a warrant to allow investigators to search the offices of data analytics firm Cambridge Analytica.
Elizabeth Denham, the information commissioner, had requested a warrant to access records and data held by the firm amid claims that it had illegally accessed information from Facebook to influence political opinion.
The Information Commissioner’s Office launched an investigation into the acquisition and use of Facebook data by Cambridge Analytica as well as the third party app developed by Russian academic Aleksandr Kogan to gather the data.
Cambridge Analytica has come under intense scrutiny and international focus after revelations by an ex-employee that the firm had harvested more than 50 million Facebook profiles and accessed private information.
Lawmakers in the U.K., the EU and the U.S. have repeatedly requested that Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, testify before investigative committees over its negligence in the data breach.
Both Facebook and Cambridge Analytica deny any wrongdoing and maintain that they had not illegally acquired private information.