Shares of Facebook (FB) are slipping following media reports saying that Cambridge Analytica harvested private information from more than 50M users in developing techniques to support President Donald Trump’s 2016 election campaign. The data analytics company has since been suspended by the social media platform. Commenting on the news, Pivotal Research analyst Brian Wieser told investors he sees enhanced risks for Facebook following the data leak.

CAMBRIDGE ANALYTICA SUSPENDED: Facebook has suspended Cambridge Analytica, the political data company that worked with the Trump presidential campaign, claiming it violated rules by failing to delete user data collected by an app for research purposes, The Financial Times reported. Over the weekend, The New York Times published an article saying the data analytics company harvested private information from more than 50M Facebook users in developing techniques to support Trump’s 2016 election campaign.

FACEBOOK SPARKS PRIVACY VIOLATIONS DEBATE: Several U.S. Republican lawmakers have expressed concern over privacy violations following the news report by The New York Times. “This is a big deal when you have that amount of data. And the privacy violations there are significant,” Senator Jeff Flake, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said in an appearance on CNN. “So, the question is, who knew it? When did they know it? How long did this go on? And what happens to that data now?” Meanwhile, EU Justice Chief Vera Jourorva also commented on the matter, saying the misuse of personal data of Facebook users is “horrifying if confirmed” and that she will seek further clarification from Facebook this week on a previously scheduled U.S. trip, according to Dow Jones. On Twitter, Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey wrote, “#BREAKING: Massachusetts residents deserve answers immediately from Facebook and Cambridge Analytica. We are launching an investigation.”

‘ENHANCED RISKS’: In a research note to investors this morning, Pivotal Research’s Wieser noted that more “systemic problems” at Facebook were revealed in reporting this weekend associated with a 50M-person data leak. The analyst argued that he sees “enhanced risks for the company. Regulatory risks will intensify, enhanced use of data in advertising may be at greater risk than before, and third-party measurement partners may face more restrictions, frustrating advertisers, Wieser contended. However, the analyst sees no near-term “tangible impact” on Facebook’s business as he does not think advertisers will suddenly change the trajectory of their spending growth on the platform. Wieser reiterated a Sell rating on the shares, with a $152 price target.

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