WATCH: Zuckerberg says Facebook is open to regulation — if it’s the ‘right’ regulation

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina challenged Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg on whether the social media giant was a monopoly in the first of two Capitol Hill hearings this week.

“You don’t think you have a monopoly?” the senator asked. “It certainly doesn’t feel like that to me,” Zuckerberg said to laughs in a crowded room of lawmakers and journalists.

WATCH: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg testifies before Senate committee

The hearings this week add to the intense scrutiny over how Facebook failed to protect user data, in light of reports that data firm Cambridge Analytica improperly used the personal information of 87 million users. The platform has also faced criticism for how it was misused by foreign actors, especially during the 2016 presidential election.

On the topic of Facebook’s size, Graham had asked Zuckerberg if the company faced any real competition, saying that one way to regulate a company is through competition.

“If I’m upset with Facebook, what’s the equivalent product that I can sign up for?” the senator asked.

The company head said Facebook has several different competitors, but declined to name its biggest one. He added that the average person uses eight different apps to communicate with their social circle.

Graham asked Zuckerberg if Facebook was open to government regulation. Zuckerberg said yes, if they were the “right regulation.”
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