Facebook Deepens User Data Mining in Kenya

It has now emerged that Facebook is collecting additional citizen data beyond its users using the Wi-Fi Express program the company unveiled last year in Kenya, Tanzania, Nigeria, India, and Indonesia, the Business Daily reports.

This comes at a time when the California-based social networking company is facing protests over its data mining and consumer data protection.

In recent weeks, a mass user withdrawal has hit Facebook following exposés that it acted as a gateway for data mining firm such as Cambridge Analytica to collect data on millions of users.

In 2017, Facebook unveiled a new service again dubbed Facebook Express in Kenya and Nigeria and later in India, Tanzania and Indonesia.This is a standard paid-for Wi-Fi service rolled out as a ‘feel-good’ peoples’ Internet.

Facebook's Express Internet service, which was launched in thousands of hotspots, including over 1,000 in Kenya is thought to have expanded the company’s data phishing capacity with unknown consequences to users.

 Express Internet has a service that grants consumers free access to Facebook and some extras, such as weather forecasts.

It is relatively cheaper compared to the packages offered by other internet providers. For instance, a 3GB monthly data package goes for Sh500.

Facebook sought ISP partners in Kenya, where it supplied them with the equipment for their Wi-Fi access points, selling each access point at around $250 (Sh25,000) and around another $200 (Sh20,000) to install.

However, many ISP have raised questions into the software in the access points. Majority of world’s Wi-Fi access points are sourced from either Microtiq and Ubiquiti, and come with an operating system known as firmware.

Facebook sought it from Ubiquiti on condition that it would grant it authority to introduce its own software dubbed ‘little black box’ into each access point, but the firm refused, forcing to turn to lesser known supplier Cambrian, which agreed to have it insert the black box.

Facebook receives all the information submitted by Facebook users via Facebook, which accounts for about 20 per cent of most ISP’s data. It is for this reason that the purpose of black boxes in the access points is seen by many as deeply worrying.