Britain probing Facebook over experiment on users

British data protection authorities are investigating revelations that Facebook conducted a psychological experiment on its users.

The Information Commissioner’s Office said Wednesday that it wants to learn more about the circumstances of the experiment carried out by two U.S. universities and the social network.

The commissioner’s office is working with authorities in Ireland, where Facebook has headquarters for its European operations. French authorities are also reviewing the matter.

Factory orders fell in May, ending 3 months of gains

Orders to U.S. factories fell in May, ending three months of gains. The Commerce Department reported that orders fell 0.5 percent, pulled down by falling demand for military and transportation equipment. That followed increases of 0.8 percent in April, 1.5 percent in March and 1.7 percent in February. Excluding military hardware, factory orders rose 0.2 percent in May from April.

Fed chair sees no need to raise interest rates yet

Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said Wednesday that she doesn’t see a need for the Fed to start raising interest rates to defuse the risk that extremely low rates could destabilize the financial system.

Yellen said she does see “pockets” of increased risk-taking. But she said those threats could be addressed through greater use of regulatory tools, such as higher capital standards for banks, which were put in place after the 2008 financial crisis.

– From news service reports

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