This Social Data Suggests #DeleteFacebook Isn't Really Happening

Social media stocks have been pounded in the past two weeks on fears that privacy concerns and data regulation could eat into social media ad revenue. The hashtag #DeleteFacebook has been trending off and on since the Cambridge Analytica story broke, and investors are rightfully concerned the wave of negative headlines could turn social media users away from the platform.

Fortunately for Facebook, Inc. FB investors, a new report from LikeFolio suggests Facebook may have weathered the storm.

The Data

There’s no question that social media users are taking the data security issue seriously. As the chart below indicates, LikeFolio found that the number of users who quit Facebook in the past two weeks is more than twice as large as previous peaks throughout the company’s history.

It’s important to note, however, that Facebook has many more users than it did during its previous peak exodus in late 2016.

A shorter-term picture of the number of users who are quitting Facebook paints a more optimistic picture, indicating that user losses peaked on around March 21 and have begun to taper off.

LikeFolio also points out that the quick, short spike in user losses that Facebook experienced this month isn't nearly as bad as the wave of Snap, Inc. SNAP Snapchat users that left the platform following the company’s poorly-received app update.

“A slow, and steadily building negative consensus… Now THAT is a user revolt,” LikeFolio said in the report.

In addition to the limited exodus from Facebook, LikeFolio found that the data headlines have had almost zero impact on Facebook-owned Instagram.

LikeFolio concludes it’s unlikely Facebook will witness a meaningful decline in user numbers in the wake of its data scandals and the large market sell-off in recent weeks is a buying opportunity.

Facebook's stock, on the other, has lost about $80 billion in market value since the Cambridge scandal broke earlier this month. At time of publication, the stock was trading higher by 1 percent at $153.11.

Related Links:

Analyst: FTC Could Hit Facebook With $1-2 Billion Fine, The Largest In Agency History

The Facebook Data Controversy: What Wall Street Thinks