Facebook has admitted it allowed Chinese electronics firms Huawei , Lenovo , Oppo and TCL to have special access to its users ' data . The arrangement , dating from 2010 , gave these Chinese firms detailed information on device users and their friends . Huawei , which is closely tied to China 's government , had previously been flagged by US intelligence agencies as a national security threat . The Federal Trade Commission is presently investigating Facebook over whether its data policies violate a 2011 consent decree with the commission . Facebook has said it is exiting the Huawei deal imminently .
Facebook has admitted it allowed Chinese electronics companies Huawei, Lenovo, Oppo and TCL to have special access to its users' data. The arrangement, dating from 2010, gave these Chinese firms detailed information on device users and their friends. Huawei, which is closely tied to China's government, had previously been flagged by US intelligence officials as a national security threat. The Federal Trade Commission is presently investigating Facebook over whether its data policies violate a 2011 consent decree with the commission. Facebook has said it is exiting the Huawei deal imminently.