Cambridge Analytica chief executive Alexander Nix suspended over Facebook data scandal
Video report by ITV News political correspondent Paul Brand
Alexander Nix, chief executive of Cambridge Analytica, has been suspended following an undercover investigation by Channel 4 News.
"The board of Cambridge Analytica has announced today that it has suspended CEO Alexander Nix with immediate effect, pending a full, independent investigation.
"In the view of the Board, Mr Nix's recent comments secretly recorded by Channel 4 and other allegations do not represent the values or operations of the firm and his suspension reflects the seriousness with which we view this violation."
In a secret recording by a Channel 4 News journalist posing as a fixer for a wealthy Sri Lankan family seeking to get candidates elected, Alexander Nix claimed that Cambridge Analytica ran "all" of the elements of the Trump presidential campaign.
"We did all the research, all the data, all the analytics, all the targeting, we ran all the digital campaign, the television campaign and our data informed all the strategy."
When asked if there would be incriminating evidence, Nix replied that his team used a self-destructing email system that leaves no trace.
"No-one knows we have it, and secondly we set our... emails with a self-destruct timer... So you send them and after they've been read, two hours later, they disappear.
"There's no evidence, there's no paper trail, there's nothing."
He also claimed that Cambridge Analytica could avoid any American investigation into its foreign clients: "I'm absolutely convinced that they have no jurisdiction... We'll say none of your business."