Facebook suspends tens of thousands of apps as part of probe initiated after Cambridge Analytica scandal

Facebook has suspended tens of thousands of apps on its social media platform as part of an investigation initiated in March 2018 in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica data scandal, the company said on Friday.

The suspended applications are associated with some 400 developers, the company said in a statement, adding that the move does not indicate that these applications posed a threat to people.

"Our App Developer Investigation is by no means finished. But there is meaningful progress to report so far. To date, this investigation has addressed millions of apps. Of those, tens of thousands have been suspended for a variety of reasons while we continue to investigate," the statement read.

The company initiated the investigation following revelations that Cambridge Analytica, a British consultancy, had retrieved the information of an estimated 87 million Facebook users without their permission.

The social media giant was fined USD 5 billion in July by the US Federal trade commission in what was reported to be the biggest ever fine imposed on a company for violating consumer's privacy.