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The icons of Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp can be seen on the screen of a smartphone in Kempten, Germany, Monday, Oct. 4, 2021. The six-hour outage of Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp on Monday was a headache for many casual users. But the outage was far more serious for many people worldwide who rely on the social media sites to communicate with relatives, friends and neighbors and run their businesses. It’s a stark reminder that many of the most popular ways to communicate are controlled by one company, Facebook. And any lengthy outage can have severe implications. (Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/dpa via AP)

Outage highlights how vital Facebook has become worldwide

For small businesses, the outages meant hundreds or thousands of dollars in lost revenue

The icons of Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp can be seen on the screen of a smartphone in Kempten, Germany, Monday, Oct. 4, 2021. The six-hour outage of Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp on Monday was a headache for many casual users. But the outage was far more serious for many people worldwide who rely on the social media sites to communicate with relatives, friends and neighbors and run their businesses. It’s a stark reminder that many of the most popular ways to communicate are controlled by one company, Facebook. And any lengthy outage can have severe implications. (Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/dpa via AP)
Facebook (Courtesy photo)

Facebook back after lengthy global outage blamed on router issues

The company apologized and said it is working to understand more about the cause

Facebook (Courtesy photo)
FILE - In this March 29, 2018, file photo, the logo for Facebook appears on screens at the Nasdaq MarketSite in New York’s Times Square. Facebook prematurely turned off safeguards designed to thwart misinformation and rabble rousing after Joe Biden defeated Donald Trump in the 2020 elections in a moneymaking move that a company whistleblower alleges contributed to the deadly Jan. 6, 2021, invasion of the U.S. Capitol. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)

UPDATED: Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram suffer worldwide outage

The company did not say what might be causing the outage

FILE - In this March 29, 2018, file photo, the logo for Facebook appears on screens at the Nasdaq MarketSite in New York’s Times Square. Facebook prematurely turned off safeguards designed to thwart misinformation and rabble rousing after Joe Biden defeated Donald Trump in the 2020 elections in a moneymaking move that a company whistleblower alleges contributed to the deadly Jan. 6, 2021, invasion of the U.S. Capitol. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)
FILE - In this Dec. 31, 2020, file photo, President Donald Trump arrives on the South Lawn of the White House, in Washington. Facebook says, on Friday, June 4, it will suspend Trump’s accounts for two years following its finding that he stoked violence ahead of the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection. Facebook also plans to end a contentious policy championed by CEO Mark Zuckerberg that automatically exempted politicians from certain moderation rules on its site. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)

Facebook suspends Trump for 2 years, then will reassess

The former president called Facebook’s decision ‘an insult’

FILE - In this Dec. 31, 2020, file photo, President Donald Trump arrives on the South Lawn of the White House, in Washington. Facebook says, on Friday, June 4, it will suspend Trump’s accounts for two years following its finding that he stoked violence ahead of the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection. Facebook also plans to end a contentious policy championed by CEO Mark Zuckerberg that automatically exempted politicians from certain moderation rules on its site. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
FILE - President Donald Trump speaks to crowd before boarding Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., in this Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021, file photo. Former President Donald Trump will find out this week whether he gets to return to Facebook. The social network’s quasi-independent Oversight Board says it will announce its decision Wednesday, May 5 on a case concerning the former president. Trump’s account was suspended for inciting violence that led to the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol riots. (AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez, File)

Facebook board upholds Trump suspension

The board said the ongoing risk of serious violence justified Facebook’s suspension at the time

FILE - President Donald Trump speaks to crowd before boarding Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., in this Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021, file photo. Former President Donald Trump will find out this week whether he gets to return to Facebook. The social network’s quasi-independent Oversight Board says it will announce its decision Wednesday, May 5 on a case concerning the former president. Trump’s account was suspended for inciting violence that led to the deadly Jan. 6 Capitol riots. (AP Photo/Luis M. Alvarez, File)
Details from more than 500 million Facebook users have been found available on a website for hackers. (Bloomberg/Andrew Harrer)

Facebook data on more than 500 million accounts found online

Details from users have been found available on a website for hackers

Details from more than 500 million Facebook users have been found available on a website for hackers. (Bloomberg/Andrew Harrer)
Guests are welcomed by people in Facebook shirts as they arrive at the Facebook Canadian Summit in Toronto on Wednesday, March 28, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Donovan

Facebook Canada head warns news posts could be blocked as last resort

Facebook blocked all news on its platform in Australia for 5 days in response to proposed legislation that would require it to pay media outlets for linking to their work

Guests are welcomed by people in Facebook shirts as they arrive at the Facebook Canadian Summit in Toronto on Wednesday, March 28, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Donovan
In this March 29, 2018 file photo, the logo for social media giant Facebook, appears on screens at the Nasdaq MarketSite, in New York’s Times Square. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP/Richard Drew

Finance Department sees issues with Facebook’s digital currency, documents show

Officials appeared less concerned about rivals like Bitcoin

In this March 29, 2018 file photo, the logo for social media giant Facebook, appears on screens at the Nasdaq MarketSite, in New York’s Times Square. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP/Richard Drew
Minister of Canadian Heritage Steven Guilbeault responds to a question during Question Period in the House of Commons, Monday, Feb. 3, 2020 in Ottawa. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

Facebook’s blocking news links in Australia ‘irresponsible’: Guilbeault

Meanwhile, Google has reached a voluntary deal with Australian publishers

Minister of Canadian Heritage Steven Guilbeault responds to a question during Question Period in the House of Commons, Monday, Feb. 3, 2020 in Ottawa. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
Privacy commissioner Daniel Therrien speaks during a news conference in Ottawa, Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

Clearview AI broke Canadian privacy laws with facial recognition tool, watchdogs say

Clearview AI’s technology allows for the collection of huge numbers of images from various sources

Privacy commissioner Daniel Therrien speaks during a news conference in Ottawa, Tuesday, Dec. 10, 2019. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
An iPhone displays the Facebook app in New Orleans on Aug. 11, 2019. Two Facebook users are seeking damages on behalf of hundreds of thousands of Canadians whose personal data may have been improperly used for political purposes. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Jenny Kane

Canadian class-action suit against Facebook alleges misuse of personal information

Facebook has repeatedly said there is no evidence that Canadian user data was shared with Cambridge Analytica

An iPhone displays the Facebook app in New Orleans on Aug. 11, 2019. Two Facebook users are seeking damages on behalf of hundreds of thousands of Canadians whose personal data may have been improperly used for political purposes. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Jenny Kane
An iPhone displays the Facebook app in New Orleans on Aug. 11, 2019. Two Facebook users are seeking damages on behalf of hundreds of thousands of Canadians whose personal data may have been improperly used for political purposes. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Jenny Kane

Planned class-action suit against Facebook alleges misuse of personal information

The probe followed reports that Facebook let an outside organization use an app to access users’ personal information

An iPhone displays the Facebook app in New Orleans on Aug. 11, 2019. Two Facebook users are seeking damages on behalf of hundreds of thousands of Canadians whose personal data may have been improperly used for political purposes. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP, Jenny Kane
Facebook’s public policy director Neil Potts, left, and global director and head of public policy Canada, Kevin Chan, speak with the clerk as he places name plates for Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg as they wait to appear before The International Grand Committee on Big Data, Privacy and Democracy in Ottawa, Tuesday, May 28, 2019. Facebook Canada says it is taking measures to ensure election integrity ahead of the Oct. 24 vote in British Columbia. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

Facebook says its election integrity strategy is in effect in B.C.

Content promoting voter suppression will be removed under the company’s community standards

Facebook’s public policy director Neil Potts, left, and global director and head of public policy Canada, Kevin Chan, speak with the clerk as he places name plates for Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg as they wait to appear before The International Grand Committee on Big Data, Privacy and Democracy in Ottawa, Tuesday, May 28, 2019. Facebook Canada says it is taking measures to ensure election integrity ahead of the Oct. 24 vote in British Columbia. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
(Bloomberg photo by Andrew Harrer)

Unclear how many misinformation posts about B.C. election are shared on Facebook

The social media company says it has two methods for dealing with misinformation on its platforms

(Bloomberg photo by Andrew Harrer)
Former Sooke hotel operator Timothy Durkin is suing Facebook for $50 million over an “imposter account” that is trolling him. (Dreamstime/TNS)

Former Vancouver Island hotel owner suing Facebook for $50M over ‘imposter profile’

Man demands account be removed and identity of account holder revealed

Former Sooke hotel operator Timothy Durkin is suing Facebook for $50 million over an “imposter account” that is trolling him. (Dreamstime/TNS)
Facebook, citing virus misinformation, deletes Trump post

Facebook, citing virus misinformation, deletes Trump post

This is not the first time that Facebook has removed a post from Trump

Facebook, citing virus misinformation, deletes Trump post
Instagram Reels is displayed on a mobile phone on Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020 in New York. Facebook’s Instagram is officially launching its answer to the hit short video app TikTok — Instagram Reels. The new Instagram feature will let users record and edit 15-second videos with audio, and will let users add visual effects. Users will be able to share Reels with followers in Instagram in a dedicated section called Reels in Explore, or in the Story feature where posts disappear after 24 hours. (AP Photo/Tali Arbel)

Facebook launches its new TikTok clone, Instagram Reels

Facebook has a long tradition of cloning competitive services

Instagram Reels is displayed on a mobile phone on Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020 in New York. Facebook’s Instagram is officially launching its answer to the hit short video app TikTok — Instagram Reels. The new Instagram feature will let users record and edit 15-second videos with audio, and will let users add visual effects. Users will be able to share Reels with followers in Instagram in a dedicated section called Reels in Explore, or in the Story feature where posts disappear after 24 hours. (AP Photo/Tali Arbel)
Image: The Canadian Press

Black worker files discrimination complaint against Facebook

Oscar Veneszee, Jr. has worked as an operations program manager at Facebook since 2017

Image: The Canadian Press
FILE – Facebook on web browser. (Dreamstime/TNS)

Canada’s five big banks join anti-hate advertising boycott of Facebook

Participating brands will suspend all advertising on the platform for the month of July

FILE – Facebook on web browser. (Dreamstime/TNS)
Guest are welcomed by people in Facebook shirts as they arrive at a Facebook Canadian Summit in Toronto on Wednesday, March 28, 2018. Friends of Canadian Broadcasting wants the federal government to drop hosting its virtual Canada Day celebration on Facebook Inc. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Donovan
Guest are welcomed by people in Facebook shirts as they arrive at a Facebook Canadian Summit in Toronto on Wednesday, March 28, 2018. Friends of Canadian Broadcasting wants the federal government to drop hosting its virtual Canada Day celebration on Facebook Inc. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Donovan