LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced on Wednesday it would charge Facebook with violating the Fair Housing Act after it encouraged, enabled, and caused housing discrimination through its advertising platform.
The announcement follows a HUD investigation of a Secretary-initiated complaint filed on August 13, 2018 where it was alleged that the Mark Zuckerberg-owned social media platform had unlawfully discriminated, by limiting who could view house advertisements on Facebook, based on race, color, national origin, religion, familial status, sex and disability.

HUD also said Facebook mines extensive data about its users and then uses that data to determine which of its users view housing-related ads based, in part, on those discriminatory characteristics.

"Facebook is discriminating against people based upon who they are and where they live," said HUD Secretary Ben Carson.

"Using a computer to limit a person's housing choices can be just as discriminatory as slamming a door in someone's face."

HUD General Counsel Paul Compton added, "Even as we confront new technologies, the fair housing laws enacted over half a century ago remain clear-discrimination in housing-related advertising is against the law. Just because a process to deliver advertising is opaque and complex doesn't mean that it's exempts Facebook and others from our scrutiny and the law of the land."

Facebook said it was surprised by the decision and has been working with HUD to address the issues and prevent further discrimination, said Reuters.

The social media platform said last week that it would create a new advertising portal for housing and employment ads that would limit advertisers' targeting options.

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