Facebook got hit with $5 billion fine, but it's what comes next that matters most

The Federal Trade Commission has voted to fine Facebook $5 billion as the result of its long-running investigation into the social network's privacy violations, The Wall Street Journal reported.

The settlement, which has not yet been finalized, according to the report, comes after a lengthy investigation into the company's privacy practices that kicked off last March following the Cambridge Analytica scandal. 

Five billion will set a record for the largest such fine ever imposed on a tech company. (Google previously held the record for a $22.5 million fine it received in 2012.) But a multibillion-dollar fine alone will have little impact on the company, which took in more than $15 billion in revenue last quarter alone. Read more...