British trip-hop duo Massive Attack have utterly cut ties with Facebook, deleting their profile on the social media site in aftermath of a massive data breach.
The social media site has been facing international backlash since news broke that the private information of more than 50 million users was accessed by Cambridge Analytica.
Cambridge Analytica is a private firm made up of data scientists, who’ve recently been linked to Donald Trump’s presidential victory. Whistleblower Chris Wylie, a former Research Director at the company, recently revealed that he was the one who performed the data grab of Facebook profiles.
In a statement to their Twitter page on Wednesday, Massive Attack explained why they made the decision, “In light of FB’s continued disregard for your privacy, their lack of transparency and disregard for accountability – Massive Attack will be temporarily withdrawing from FB.”
The band is encouraging fans to check their website and Twitter page for updates on tours, new music and more.
Meanwhile, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg broke his silence on Wednesday afternoon, admitting the company has made mistakes and outlines how he plans on fixing things. “We have a responsibility to protect your data, and if we can’t then we don’t deserve to serve you,” he wrote. Zuckerberg explained he’s spent the last few days “working to understand what happened and how to make sure this doesn’t happen again. I know it takes longer to fix all these issues than we’d like, but I promise you we’ll work through this and build a better service over the long term.”
In January, Massive Attack announced the English version of the book “Massive Attack: A Bristol Story,” which traces their history and relationship with the UK city. It’s set to be released on 9 April via Tangent Books.
Photo Credit: Sharon Alagna