Facebook would likely brush off a $5 billion fine from the FTC

Facebook logo.
(Image credit: JOEL SAGET/AFP via Getty Images)

Oh, the wonders of Silicon Valley.

Facebook said on Wednesday that it expects to face a fine of up to $5 billion from the Federal Trade Commission for allegedly violating a 2011 privacy consent decree. The New York Times reports that the total would be a record penalty for a technology company by the agency. But at the end of the day, it doesn't seem like the social media company will lose much sleep over the amount.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Tim O'Donnell

Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.