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'False information, unfounded conspiracy theories': Cambridge Analytica rejects whistleblower's testimony

Cambridge Analytica rejected whistleblower Christopher Wylie's testimony before the British parliamentary committee.

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Cambridge Analytica, the firm at the Centre of privacy debate after allegedly stealing Facebook data of 50 million users, today rejected the whistleblower's testimony before the British parliamentary committee. 

Rejecting Christopher Wylie's testimony, the firm said the committee heard "false information, speculation, and completely unfounded conspiracy theories from a witness regarding Cambridge Analytica." 

 

Wylie, who previously revealed that consultancy Cambridge Analytica had accessed the data of 50 million Facebook users to build voter profiles on behalf of Donald Trump's campaign, said Canadian company AggregateIQ had developed a programme to target Republican voters in the 2016 US election. 

"There's now tangible proof in the public domain that AIQ actually built Ripon, which is the software that utilised the algorithms from the Facebook data," Wylie told the British Parliament's Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee.

In a statement after his testimony, CA said: "Chris Wylie has misrepresented himself and the company to the committee, and previously to the news media. He admits himself that what he says is speculation and therefore we feel it is important to set out the actual facts which are as follows."

Chris Wylie was a part-time contractor who left Cambridge Analytica in July 2014 and has no direct knowledge of the company’s work or practices since that date, it said. 

 

"He was at the company for less than a year, after which he was made the subject of restraining undertakings to prevent his misuse of the company's intellectual property while attempting to set up his own rival firm. He was not, as he claims, a founder of Cambridge Analytica," the firm added. 

Wylie was also quizzed on the use of data in the 2016 Brexit referendum, which has become a hot topic in Britain.

Whistleblowers have said the main campaign for leaving the EU broke the law on spending limits by spending money with another Brexit campaign group that it was closely affiliated with, a claim denied by senior Brexit campaigners.

Vote Leave denies any wrongdoing. 

In terms of CA's links with India, Wylie said the company had worked extensively in India and believed it was employed by the Congress party.

"When you look at Facebook's biggest market, India is the top in terms of numbers of users. Obviously, that's a country which is rife with political discord and opportunities for destabilisation," said Labour MP Paul Farrelly, member of the parliamentary committee, during his questioning.

 

"They (Cambridge Analytica) worked extensively in India. They have an office in India," Wylie responded.

"I believe their client was Congress, but I know that they have done all kinds of projects. I don't remember a national project but I know regionally. India's so big that one state can be as big as Britain. But they do have offices there, they do have staff there," the 28-year-old added, on being probed further.

He offered to provide the committee "documentation" on India, which was welcomed by Farrelly, who said India was a country that did not need any added "tensions".

(With agencies)

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