Sherrod Brown said trusting Facebook with your hard-earned money is delusional.
Facebook is developing a digital currency called Libra. The man in charge of the project is Calibra CEO David Marcus. He appeared before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Tuesday.
Brown is the ranking member of the committee. In the C-SPAN recording of the hearing, he said Facebook is reckless with its technology, comparing it to a toddler with a book of matches.
“Facebook has two competing missions: make the world more open and connected and make a lot of money. And as Facebook attempts to serve both these missions, they wreak havoc on the rest of us,” Brown said.
He cited the company’s history of data breaches, Libra’s Swiss-based headquarters and Russia’s use of Facebook to influence the 2016 election.
He also mentioned a UN Report alleging Facebook and other social media companies were used to spread harmful propaganda in Myanmar, which eventually led to the deaths of more 1,000 people.
