UK Investigators Probe Russian Access to Facebook Data

British authorities looking into inappropriate use of data gathered by political consultant Cambridge Analytica from millions of Facebook users say some of the systems that accessed the material appear to be in Russia or a group of former Soviet states.

The Information Commissioner's Office, which is investigating data analytics by political campaigns, says in a statement Wednesday that "some of the systems linked to the investigation were accessed from IP addresses that appear to resolve to Russia and other areas of the (Commonwealth of Independent States.)"

Cambridge Analytica whistleblower Christopher Wylie has said he feared that the data may have been turned over to Russians who aimed to interfere with the US election. He has alleged the Facebook data was used to target voters by Donald Trump's 2016 election campaign.

Last week, Facebook was fined by UK regulators for allowing Cambridge Analytica to improperly access data about millions of people, potentially opening the door for governments around the world to slap the social media giant with other tougher penalties and stricter regulation.

The Information Commissioner's Office announced a $664,000 (roughly Rs. 4.5 crores) preliminary fine - the maximum amount allowed - after finding Facebook lacked strong privacy protections and overlooked critical warning signs that might have prevented Cambridge Analytica from trying to manipulate public opinion on behalf of clients around the world, including those who sought to withdraw Britain from the European Union in 2016.

The penalty from the UK data watchdog could change as the agency discusses the matter further with Facebook. Normally, the ICO does not reveal its initial findings but said it had done so in this case because of the heightened public interest in the matter. It promised another update in October.

Written with agency inputs