Apple CEO Tim Cook criticized Facebook as the social media site continues to make headlines in light of data-privacy concerns raised by the Cambridge Analytica scandal.
At a town hall event hosted by MSNBC’s Chris Hayes and Recode’s Kara Swisher, Cook had some heated words for the social media giant.
Cook said Facebook’s detailed personal information on its users should not exist in the first place. “I think the best regulation is no regulation, is self-regulation,” he said, according to NBC News. “However, I think we’re beyond that here, and I do think that it’s time for a set of people to think deeply about what can be done here.”
Facebook is in hot water after it was revealed that Cambridge Analytica, linked to the Trump campaign, tapped personal information from up to 50 million Facebook users without the their consent.
“Privacy to us is a human right,” Cook said. “It’s a civil liberty, and something that is unique to America. This is like freedom of speech and freedom of the press. Privacy is right up there with that for us.”
When asked at the event what he would do if he were in Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s predicament, he responded, “What would I do? I wouldn’t be in this situation.”
Zuckerberg has apologized for the breach of information. In a statement posted on his personal Facebook page, he wrote, “We will learn from this experience to secure our platform further and make our community safer for everyone going forward.”
Speaking about Apple’s business practices, Cook said, “The truth is we could make a ton of money if we monetized our customer, if our customer was our product. We’ve elected not to do that.”
Cook’s interview is part of MSNBC’s “Revolution” series, which will air on April 6 at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
