Meta Denies Granting Netflix Access to Users’ Private Messages
A recent claim that Meta provided Netflix with access to users’ private messages has been circulating on X, formerly known as Twitter. The allegation, which was amplified by X owner Elon Musk, stems from a court filing that emerged during the discovery process of a class-action lawsuit against Meta regarding its data privacy practices.
The Alleged “Special Relationship” Between Netflix and Facebook
The document suggests that Netflix and Facebook had a “special relationship,” with Facebook even reducing its investment in original content for its Facebook Watch video service to avoid competing with Netflix, a significant Facebook advertiser. It also claims that Netflix had access to Meta’s “Inbox API,” which allegedly provided the streaming giant with “programmatic access to Facebook’s user’s private message inboxes.”
Meta’s Response to the Allegations
In response to the circulating claims, Meta’s communications director, Andy Stone, took to X to dispute the accuracy of the document’s assertions. Stone stated:
Shockingly untrue. Meta didn’t share people’s private messages with Netflix. The agreement allowed people to message their friends on Facebook about what they were watching on Netflix, directly from the Netflix app. Such agreements are commonplace in the industry.
According to Meta, while Netflix did have programmatic access to users’ inboxes, it did not utilize this access to read private messages.
Previous Reports on Netflix and Spotify’s Access to Private Messages
This is not the first time such allegations have surfaced. In 2018, The New York Times reported that Netflix and Spotify could read users’ private messages based on documents it had obtained. Meta denied these claims at the time, explaining that the access granted to these companies allowed users to message friends about their activities on the respective platforms directly from their apps.
The Importance of End-to-End Encryption
It is worth noting that Messenger did not implement default end-to-end encryption until December 2023. The absence of encrypted communications, combined with read/write access to message inboxes, means there was no guarantee that messages were protected, even if that was not the focus of the business arrangement.
Netflix’s Unique Access and Relationship with Facebook
Despite Meta downplaying Netflix’s ability to access private messages, the document suggests that Netflix had a level of access that other companies did not. Netflix had access to Facebook’s “Titan API,” a private API that allowed integration with Facebook’s messaging app. In exchange, Netflix agreed to provide Facebook with regular reports on recommendation sends and recipient clicks, and to keep the API agreement confidential.
The document also highlights the close relationship between Netflix and Facebook executives, with direct communications between then-Netflix CEO Reed Hastings and Facebook executives, including CEO Mark Zuckerberg, COO Sheryl Sandberg, Comms VP Elliot Schrage, and CTO Andrew Bosworth.
As the class-action lawsuit progresses, more details may emerge about the nature of the relationship between Meta and Netflix and the extent of the data access granted to the streaming company.
1 Comment
So Meta’s playing the innocence card once more, huh? Classic!