Facebook shares sink more than 6 per cent on privacy issues

Facebook shares fell more than 6 per cent in morning trading as the social media company faced criticism following reports that a data mining company working for the Trump campaign improperly obtained and kept data on tens of millions of users during the 2016 election.

A former employee of Cambridge Analytica said today NBC's "Today" that the group identified voters who might be swayed and "injected content" that may or may not be true.

Facebook said Friday that it had suspended Cambridge while it investigates.

Facebook shares sank USD 12.03 in morning trading, putting the stock on pace for its biggest one-day fall since August 2012 and dragging down the rest of the technology sector. Alphabet, Google's parent company, lost almost 3 per cent and Microsoft fell almost 2 per cent.