Facebook Whistleblower: FB Knows You're Addicted But Won't Do Anything About It

A bombshell testimony by former Facebook employee Frances Haugen about the company's practices has shaken public belief in the parent company of Facebook and Instagram.

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As regular users of social media, it's easy to forget the factors that drive us to using the platforms every few hours or even minutes. Now, Frances Haugen claims that that the platform was designed to lure in users and to maintain its addictive properties.

Frances Haugen, a former product manager on Facebook's civic misinformation team confirmed the worst fears of Facebook's critics, including addiction, its impact on children and misinformation that flourishes on Facebook.

Profit over people

In documents shared with the Wall Street Journal, Haugen shed light on Facebook's practices wherein the company's profits are prioritised over the mental well being of its users.

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On Tuesday, Frances Haugen testified to US lawmakers how Facebook is endangering the well-being of kids and the very founding principles of democracy.

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"The company¡¯s leadership knows how to make Facebook and Instagram safer, but won¡¯t make the necessary changes as they put their astronomical profits before people", Haugen said during her testimony.

A cycle of addiction

In addition, she explained how certain content is shown to users that keeps them locked in a cycle of dopamine hits wherein both the user and those receiving the likes will feel compelled to post more content.

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While this mechanism keeps Facebook enormously profitable, it also pushes its users into addiction, based on its "engagement-based ranking" model. This model shows users the content based on what is more likely to elicit a positive response in the form of likes and comments, but fools users into believing that they're exercising their free will everytime they log onto the social media portal.

Besides sharing how Facebook and its subsidiaries function, Haugen urged US lawmakers to intervene, claiming that Facebook "won't solve this crisis without your help".

Do you agree with Haugen about how Facebook doesn't care enough for its users? Let us know what you think in the comments below. For more in the world of science and technology, keep reading Indiatimes.com.