Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg Set to Testify Before Congress Next Week

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has agreed to testify before the US House Energy and Commerce Committee on April 11, the chairman and top Democrat on that committee announced Wednesday.

According to a new report from the Washington Post, US Representatives Greg Walden and Frank Pallone said the House energy and commerce committee hearing will focus on Facebook’s “use and protection of user data.”

Announcement of the hearing date comes as Facebook faces scrutiny over its data collection following allegations that the political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica obtained data on tens of millions of Facebook users to try to influence elections. Walden is the committee’s Republican chairman and Pallone is the panel’s top Democrat.

“This hearing will be an important opportunity to shed light on critical consumer data privacy issues and help all Americans better understand what happens to their personal information online,” said Chairman Greg Walden of Oregon, in a joint statement with ranking panel Democrat Frank Pallone of New Jersey.

“We appreciate Mr. Zuckerberg’s willingness to testify before the committee, and we look forward to him answering our questions on April 11th,” the representatives continued.

Last month, it was revealed that Cambridge Analytica, a political data firm connected to Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign, harvested 50 million Facebook users’ data without their consent. The resulting outcry prompted Zuckerberg to publicly apologize. He said that he would be “open” to testifying before Congress in subsequent interviews.

The Facebook executive’s hearing is scheduled for 10 a.m. E.T. on Wednesday, April 11.