Facebook has concluded that 87 million users were affected by the Cambridge Analytica data breach, most of which are residents of the United States. The personal information gathered from users was used to impact the presidential election. This scandal has been highly debated over the last few weeks, and the discussion continues as Facebook co-founder and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, took the stand to testify on Capitol Hill this week. The conversation surrounding the data breach has been focused on a user’s right to privacy, and to what extent Facebook has violated that by sharing their personal information to create content, which is now being referred to as “psychographic” targeting. As a result, Facebook is implementing new policies that will increase user’s protection of privacy, and make it easier for them to customize privacy settings. In the midst of these changes, business are wondering how might this impact their communication efforts?

To begin, Facebook’s new algorithm will make it more difficult for business pages to connect with their followers. The algorithm will show content from a user’s family first, then friends, and business accounts last. However, not only communications via Facebook will be affected by the Cambridge Analytica data breach. This event has made users more skeptical of communication platforms in general, and moving forward it may be more difficult to get in touch with your audience. Whether using platforms for video chat and voice calling, document sharing and other confidential information through chatting, screen sharing, and file sharing, it is always crucial to work with a trusted company who puts security first. Customers want to be sure that the communication platforms they use to connect with a business are secure, and will actively protect their private information. One way to increase security is through a unified communications platform because all communication information can be monitored in one place.

If your business is looking to streamline communication efforts, while increasing the level of security for both your business and customers, then ensure you are working with a trusted partner who stresses privacy and best practices when it comes to securing data.

Contact an Altigen representative to learn more about our Hosted Skype for Business solutions and our Unified Communications solutions that always put your security as a top priority.