Ted Cruz hired developer banned by Facebook and under investigation by EU in Senate campaign: report

In his successful 2018 re-election campaign, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) employed a data firm that has been banned by Facebook for allegedly using stolen user data and which is under investigation in Europe, reports Fast Company.

Cruz defeated upstart Democrat Beto O'Rourke in the race.

Cruz "deployed a smartphone app created by a software team at the heart of the Cambridge Analytica controversy," in the campaign's closing hours, the report says, despite the developer being banned by Facebook because the company says it used stolen user data in the 2016 presidential campaign.

The firm Cruz used, AggregateIQ, was involved in the Brexit campaign, and has since been targeted by investigators under Europe’s data privacy laws.

"In April, Facebook announced it had suspended AggregateIQ over its possible improper access to the data of millions of Facebook users. But over a dozen apps made by AggregateIQ remained connected to Facebook’s platform until May and June, when Facebook belatedly took action against them," the report says.

The company's name was hidden from the description in the app store and Cruz refused to comment about what these the firm may have done for them.