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Apple CEO Tim Cook Slams Facebook: Privacy ‘Is a Human Right'

Cook said Apple has chosen not to monetize its customers' user data

Apple CEO Tim Cook on Wednesday slammed crisis-hit Facebook for profiting from user data and said "privacy to us is a human right," a civil liberty akin to freedom of speech, NBC News reported.

Speaking at an MSNBC town hall event, Cook also called for more regulation on the social media giant, which is facing criticism, lawsuits and political inquiries over how data analysis firm Cambridge Analytica acquired the user data of 50 million people.

Cook said Apple has chosen not to monetize its customers' user data: "The truth is we could make a ton of money if we monetized our customer, if our customer was our product."

Apple has long held up privacy as a value. It wouldn't unlock an iPhone that belonged to the man who killed 14 people in San Bernardino, California, in late 2015, even when the government sued.

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