Apple reportedly recruits outspoken Facebook critic to join privacy team

AppleApple has reportedly hired a former Facebook employee, who has been one of the company’s most outspoken critics over the last year or so.

Sandy Parakilas will become part of Apple’s privacy team as a product manager, working to protect people’s privacy, according to the Financial Times.

Parakilas, who worked as an operations manager for Facebook between 2011 and 2012, has previously given evidence to the UK about the social network’s data protection practices during the Cambridge Analytica scandal last year. He also once likened social media “to a slot machine” and described leaving social media platforms as feeling like “quitting cigarettes” when asked about the addictive elements of social media.

After leaving Facebook, Parakilas spent nearly four years at Uber before joining the Center for Humane Technology, which advocates for tougher regulations for tech companies. Apple bringing in Parakilas is another sign of the company’s dedication to differentiating itself against the likes of Facebook and Google by taking pride protecting people’s privacy and not using excessive amounts of data.