Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York has called on the Department of Financial Services to investigate reports that state-regulated advertisers are using Facebook's advertising platform to discriminate against protected classes.

The regulator's website says: "Facebook's advertising platform reportedly allows advertisers to tap into user's [sic] extensive personal data to use race, colour, national origin, religion, familial status, sex and disability to determine who can see advertisements."

The governor said: "The allegations against Facebook advertisers are extremely troubling and fly in the face of everything that New York stands for. I am calling on the Department of Financial Services to investigate these claims and help ensure that New Yorkers seeking housing for themselves and their families are not discriminated against in any way. We will take aggressive action and ensure that those who are behind these reprehensible alleged practices are held fully accountable."

Financial Services Superintendent Linda Lacewell said, "DFS is committed to ensuring that all New Yorkers are protected and not discriminated against, no matter whether they're engaging in social media apps or simply opening a bank account. The Department will investigate Facebook advertisers to examine these disturbing allegations and we are prepared to take whatever measures necessary to make certain that all financial service providers are in compliance with New York's stringent statutory and regulatory consumer protections."

According to reports, Facebook's advertising platform allows advertisers to modify or block ads using ZIP code (post code) information to exclude consumers because of their various characteristics. Facebook touts its advertising platform as a powerful means for housing and housing-related advertisers to reach desired consumers, and this in particular seems to be annoying the regulators. In addition to the tools that it makes available to advertisers, Facebook also allegedly uses machine learning and predictive analysis to categorise users to project each user's likely response to a given advertisement, which may recreate groupings defined by his protected class.

Senator Kevin Thomas, Senate Chair of Consumer of Affairs Committee, said, "Large social media platforms have unprecedented access to our personal data. It is critical that we take a proactive approach in protecting our private data and preventing digital discrimination. I am confident that DFS will work to address this critically important issue and continue to promote the protection of consumer privacy across New York State."

Senator Diane Savino, the Chair of the New York Senate's Internet and Technology Subcommittee, said: "Privacy and consumer data is of our utmost concern. We have held hearings on consumer privacy this session and I soon hope to move forward on legislation to better protect all New Yorkers.

New York's consumer protection initiatives

Under Governor Cuomo's administration, New York has taken regulatory and legislative action to try to protect its consumers from sharp practice. Earlier this year, the Governor launched an education initiative for the digital age, including an examination of the terms of service and privacy policies of popular web applications and services, having heard reports that Facebook secretly accessed personal information of users. In February, he directed the New York Department of State, Department of Financial Services and other state agencies to investigate these reports and urged federal regulators to also take action to protect the rights of consumers.

In January, he issued a consumer alert warning New Yorkers about a bug in the Apple FaceTime app that reportedly allowed this-or-that user to receive audio and video from the device of the person he was calling even before the person accepted or rejected the call. Cuomo took action immediately and opened an investigation, asking consumers to submit whatever complaints they might have about this security breach to the Department of State's Division of Consumer Protection to report consumer complaints.

In the wake of data-related offences at credit reporting agencies such as Equifax that exposed the private data of millions of New Yorkers to the four winds, the Department of Financial Services — at Cuomo's behest — recently issued a regulation to require agencies with significant operations in New York to register with it for the first time and to comply with New York's "first-in-the-nation" cybersecurity standard. The regulation also empowers the Superintendent of the NYDFS to deny, suspend and indeed revoke a consumer credit reporting agency's authorisation to do business with New York's regulated financial institutions and consumers if the agency is found to be transgressing.