In this Tuesday, April 18, 2017, file photo, conference workers speak in front of a demo booth at Facebook's annual F8 developer conference, in San Jose, Calif. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)
LONDON (AP) --
The chairman of the U.K. Parliament's media committee says the government office that investigated the Cambridge Analytica scandal has fined Facebook 500,000 pounds ($663,000) for failing to safeguard users' data.
Damian Collins said the Information Commissioner's Office concluded that Facebook "contravened the law by failing to safeguard people's information."
Collins said Wednesday that the company "should now make the results of their internal investigations known to the ICO, our committee and other relevant investigatory authorities."
Facebook has been under scrutiny since allegations surfaced that London-based political consultancy Cambridge Analytica used data from tens of millions of Facebook accounts to help U.S. President Donald Trump's 2016 election campaign.
The alleged offenses took place before the roll out of new European Union data protection laws that allow for much larger fines.
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Sean 'Diddy' Combs, far left, looks on from the defense table with his attorneys, as a prospective juror, far right, answers questions posed by Judge Arun Subramanian, center, at Manhattan federal court, Monday, May 5, 2025, in New York. (Elizabeth Williams via AP)
The final stage of jury selection for the racketeering and sex trafficking trial of hip-hop mogul Sean "Diddy" Combs was postponed until early next week, right before opening arguments begin, a federal judge decided on Friday.
Prosecutors allege that Combs, 55, used his fame and power at the top of the hip-hop world to sexually abuse women from 2004 to 2024. He pleaded not guilty after his September arrest and has remained held without bail at a federal lockup in Brooklyn.
Judge Arun Subramanian granted the defense lawyers' request to delay the last step in jury selection until Monday, when both sides will narrow down the pool of 45 people to 12 jurors and six alternates. Generally, lawyers do not have to explain why they are ejecting individuals from the panel.
The defense said striking prospective jurors could take as little as 10 to 15 minutes, so why not do it on Monday when they will be present. The jurors weren't required to be in the Manhattan courtroom on Friday, but Combs was there.
Prosecutors objected, saying the whole process could get gummed up if several jurors panic after being chosen and decide they don't want to take part in a high-profile trial that's expected to last two months.
Would-be jurors were asked questions earlier this week to help the judge and lawyers determine if they could be fair and impartial. And they were also questioned to ensure they could decide the case on the facts — even after seeing explicit videos of sexual activity that some might find disturbing.
On Monday, prosecutors will be permitted to strike six prospective jurors from the jury while defense lawyers were allowed 10 strikes before the jury is finalized. The process is expected to take up to an hour.
