Actor Will Ferrell deleted his Facebook account, saying he’s “very disturbed” by reports that the social media juggernaut allegedly allowed data analysis firm Cambridge Analytica to improperly access personal data on 50 million users without their consent.
Ferrell made the announcement in a March 27 Facebook post , where he said he will keep his page up for 72 hours in order to give his 9.8 million fans time to digest the news.
“I know I am not alone when I say that I was very disturbed to hear about Cambridge Analytica’s misuse of millions of Facebook users’ information in order to undermine our democracy and infringe on our citizens’ privacy,” Ferrell wrote.
“I can no longer, in good conscience, use the services of a company that allowed the spread of propaganda and directly aimed it at those most vulnerable.”
Will Ferrell joined Playboy magazine, which also deleted its Facebook account this week amid volcanic outrage over Facebook’s data-breach scandal.
Billionaire Elon Musk also deleted the accounts of his companies, Tesla and SpaceX, saying FaceBook has always given him the creeps.
“It’s not a political statement and I didn’t do this because someone dared me to do it,” Musk tweeted. “Just don’t like Facebook. Gives me the willies.”
It’s not a political statement and I didn’t do this because someone dared me to do it. Just don’t like Facebook. Gives me the willies. Sorry.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 24, 2018
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been under fire for weeks as investigations in the U.S. and the U.K. heat up. The Federal Trade Commission has launched an investigation, and Zuckerberg has agreed to testify before Congress.
Zuckerberg has apologized for his “breach of trust,” but the public backlash has not let up, as many users are furious that FB has been selling their personal data to third parties for profit.
“This was a major breach of trust and I’m really sorry that this happened,” Zuckerberg told CNN . “We have a basic responsibility to protect people’s data, and if we can’t do that, then we don’t deserve to have the opportunity to serve people.”
Adding to the controversy are reports that Zuckerberg has been rabidly selling off Facebook stock for several months.
Since January 2018, Zuckerberg has reportedly dumped 4.9 million Facebook shares.
“That was the most insider selling for any public company, going back as far as three months,” according to Argus Research’s Vickers Weekly Insider .
Facebook stock has been hammered since the scandal erupted, losing $74 billion in market value since March 16.