Facebook charged with housing discrimination by HUD

NEW YORK (AP) — The federal government charged Facebook with high-tech housing discrimination Thursday for allegedly allowing landlords and real estate brokers to systematically exclude groups such as non-Christians, immigrants and minorities from seeing ads for houses and apartments.

The civil charges filed by the Department of Housing and Urban Development could cost the social network millions of dollars in penalties. But more than that, they strike at the heart of Facebook's business model — its vaunted ability to deliver ads with surgical precision to certain groups of people and not others.

"Facebook is discriminating against people based upon who they are and where they live," HUD Secretary Ben Carson said. "Using a computer to limit a person's housing choices can be just as discriminatory as slamming a door in someone's face."

In a statement, Facebook expressed surprise over the charges, saying it has been working with HUD to address its concerns and has taken steps to prevent discrimination, including eliminating thousands of targeting options last year that could be misused by advertisers.

Just last week , Facebook agreed to overhaul its ad-targeting system and abandon some of the practices singled out by HUD to prevent discrimination not just in housing listings but in credit and employment ads as well, as part of a settlement with the American Civil Liberties Union and other activists.

"We're disappointed by today's developments, but we'll continue working with civil rights experts on these issues," the company said.

The charges were seen as more evidence that Facebook is in the crosshairs of lawmakers, regulators and activists. It is already wrestling with several government investigations in the U.S. and Europe over its data and privacy practices.

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