NY Governor Cuomo Orders Investigation of Facebook's Advertising Practices

Gov. Cuomo cited reports that advertisers use ZIP code information to discriminate on the basis of race or other protected classifications.
By Annie Gaus ,

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered an investigation Monday into alleged discrimination on Facebook's advertising platform.

Cuomo asked the U.S. Department of Financial Services to investigate reports that state-regulated advertisers used Facebook's (FB) - Get Report ad targeting tools in a discriminatory manner, Reuters reported. 

According to Reuters, Cuomo cited reports that Facebook allows advertisers to block or modify ads using ZIP code information as a proxy for discrimination on the basis of race, national origin, religion, or familial status, among other classifications.  

It's not the first time that Facebook has been accused of enabling discriminatory practices in its advertising platform.

In 2017, a ProPublica investigation found that landlords and employers used Facebook advertising to engage in discriminatory targeting on the basis of race and other classifications protected under federal law.

Facebook recently settled five lawsuits with civil rights organizations related to those findings and has agreed to amend its ad targeting model, but is facing another civil lawsuit by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development that its advertising practices violate the U.S. Fair Housing Act.

Facebook shares were roughly flat on Monday and are up 42% so far this year. 

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