Former Facebook Employee Accuses Meta of Undermining US National Security

In a series of serious allegations, former Facebook employee Sara Winn-Williams accuses Meta of collaborating with Beijing, withholding information from Congress, and developing surveillance software for China. During today’s Senate subcommittee hearing, Winn-Williams, who worked at Facebook from 2011 to 2017, claims that Meta employees informed Chinese officials about emerging technologies like artificial intelligence and attempted to gain access to the Chinese market through Project Aldrin, which included cooperation on surveillance software development. Meta denies these accusations, calling them “false claims” and pointing out that none of its services operate in China today. The controversy also highlights an underwater cable project between the US and China, abandoned in 2020 after Congressional pushback. Winn-Williams further alleges that internal Meta documents reveal how the company provided China with advantages to boost its global influence. This testimony ties into recent revelations that China’s People’s Liberation Army used Meta’s LLaMA AI model for military applications, despite Meta’s policies prohibiting such use. These allegations raise significant questions about Meta’s operations and their potential impact on US national security.