Cambridge Analytica scandal ‘unlikely to affect Switzerland’
There is no evidence that British data firm Cambridge Analytica conducted any shady activities in Switzerland, the Federal Data Protection Commissioner has told Swiss public radio.
In an interview on Saturday, Adrian Lobsiger said the scandal appears to be confined to English-speaking countries. Cambridge Analytica is at the centre of a global storm about how it culled private information from social media sites, notably Facebook. The data appears then to have been used to manipulate elections.
On Wednesday, Zurich’s data protection officer Bruno Baeriswyl told the Tages Anzeiger newspaper that voter manipulation using such data was possible in Switzerland. He warned that such methods might be put to use in the next Swiss general election.
However, Lobsiger said that he has already taken measures to reduce that risk. In his interview on Saturday he said that all Swiss political parties had been sent instructions on how they could – and could not – use private data in the build-up to votes.
Such data campaign tools may only process data of persons who have given their explicit consent, he said. “We have to make sure that political marketing is openly declared and transparent,” he said.
Lobsiger also wants large social media and internet multinationals to have physical representation in Switzerland, in the shape of lawyers rather than post boxes, he added. This is to ensure that there are answerable representatives on Swiss soil should anything go awry.
Young undocumented migrants gain easier access to vocational training
This content was published on
Rejected asylum-seekers and young undocumented migrants in Switzerland will have easier access to basic vocational training from June 1.
Migration: Swiss government wants to shorten reunification period for families
This content was published on
Family members of people temporarily admitted to Switzerland should in future be able to join them after two years instead of three.
This content was published on
2023 was a record year for the Rhaetian Railway in several respects. Never before has the narrow-gauge railway in Graubünden, eastern Switzerland, transported so many passengers and cars.
Swiss CFOs much more optimistic despite global uncertainty
This content was published on
The main concerns of business leaders in Switzerland are geopolitical uncertainty and the important trading partners Germany and China.
Record organ donation in Switzerland despite high rejection rates
This content was published on
More organ donations were recorded in Switzerland in 2023 than ever before. This was despite a high rejection rate of 58% by surviving relatives.
This content was published on
Seven years after the death of record-breaking Swiss mountain climber Ueli Steck, his estate is going to the Alpine Museum of Switzerland in Bern.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Facebook: Switzerland also vulnerable to manipulation
This content was published on
Amidst the storm involving Cambridge Analytica, the Zurich data protection officer has said that a similar scenario is possible in Switzerland.
This content was published on
Remain vigilant, continue to monitor, but no action necessary. "Fake news" is a problem, but more regulation is not the solution, the cabinet says.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.