A new filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission says Facebook spent more than $23 million in 2020 on the security of the company’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg. Facebook’s annual reviews of the company’s security identified specific threats to Zuckerberg, according to a proxy statement filed on April 9. Specifically, the proxy said of the Facebook CEO’s role: “He has become identified with Facebook, and as a result, negative sentiment about our company is directly linked to Zuckerberg and is often passed on to him.
The company's annual review of its security programs showed that the cost of protecting Zuckerberg and his family increased in 2020, mainly due to COVID-19, increased security coverage during the 2020 US election season, other periods of heightened security risk, and increased costs for security personnel.
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The “all other compensation” section of the attorney’s statement shows that Facebook spent $23 million on personal security at Zuckerberg’s residences, as well as on travel for him and his family . The social media giant’s CEO got an additional $10 million for security personnel and other security expenses . The cost of basic security was up to $13.4 million in 2020, compared to $10.4 million in 2019 .
According to the proxy statement, the compensation, nominating and governance committee believes these costs are appropriate and necessary, considering the threat landscape and the fact that Zuckerberg has requested to receive only $1 in annual salary and does not receive bonus payments, stock awards or other compensation.
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Also in the proxy statement filed on April 9, Facebook said it would submit a proposal to its shareholders meeting on May 26 to provide personal security to directors, which it believes is necessary due to the “continuous scrutiny its directors face as a result of their service on the board.”.
Facebook authorized personal security services for some of its non-employee directors in January and February “in light of the high level of scrutiny facing the company and its executives and directors, as well as the dynamic and charged atmosphere following the 2020 U.S. elections and the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021,” according to the attorney general’s statement.
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A January report by the Tech Transparency Project found that some of the extremists who carried out the Capitol attack had used private Facebook groups for months to plan and coordinate the January 6 uprising, despite Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg’s comments that the “events were largely organized on platforms where the company lacks the capacity to stop hate, and those platforms lack the company’s standards or transparency.”
Source of information: theverge.com
