Elon Musk says he’ll delete SpaceX’s Facebook page

Tech billionaire Elon Musk said Friday on Twitter that he’ll delete the Facebook page for his space exploration company SpaceX, adding to the pile-on Facebook is facing over concerns about how it handles user data after reports that a political consulting firm accessed 50 million users’ data without their consent.

Musk’s commitment to delete the page came after Brian Acton, a co-founder of Facebook-owned messaging service WhatsApp, tweeted in support of the Facebook boycott. A user then asked him if he’d join the boycott by deleting SpaceX’s Facebook page.

“I didn’t realize there was one. Will do,” Musk wrote back.

I didn’t realize there was one. Will do.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 23, 2018

Facebook is facing a backlash after reports last week revealed that Cambridge Analytica, a firm that worked on President Trump’s 2016 campaign, had obtained data on 50 million users without their knowledge. 

In an interview with The New York Times this week, Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg acknowledged that the boycott shows that the company needs to rebuild trust with its users.

“I don’t think we’ve seen a meaningful number of people act on that, but, you know, it’s not good,” he told the Times. “I think it’s a clear signal that this is a major trust issue for people, and I understand that. And whether people delete their app over it or just don’t feel good about using Facebook, that’s a big issue that I think we have a responsibility to rectify.”