X

Incoming US national security adviser used Cambridge Analytica

John Bolton's political action committee began working with the firm, now at the heart of the Facebook data scandal, soon after its founding.

Erin Carson Former Senior Writer
Erin Carson covered internet culture, online dating and the weird ways tech and science are changing your life.
Expertise Erin has been a tech reporter for almost 10 years. Her reporting has taken her from the Johnson Space Center to San Diego Comic-Con's famous Hall H. Credentials
  • She has a master's degree in journalism from Syracuse University.
Erin Carson
gettyimages-627204872.jpg

John Bolton's super PAC has ties to Cambridge Analytica.

Drew Angerer / Getty Images

Incoming national security adviser John Bolton used Cambridge Analytica early on, according to a New York Times report on Friday.

Bolton's political action committee, the John Bolton Super PAC, hired the data consultancy in 2014, not long after the firm was founded. His super PAC spent about $1.2 million in two years on services like "behavioral microtargeting with psychographic messaging," reportedly built off harvested data from Facebook users. 

The White House didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Cambridge Analytica reportedly got access to the data of millions of Facebook users and used it to create targeted ads on topics like the UK's Brexit referendum campaign, as well as for Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign. 

A US House committee is now calling on Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg to testify about the social network's role in the matter.