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After Canadian Prodding, Facebook To Change Privacy Policy
Retardical_Sam writes "Facebook has agreed to make changes to protect users' personal information on the social networking site, including the way data is accessed by third-party developers, Canada's privacy commissioner said Thursday.
Canadian officials have been negotiating with Facebook since the Office of the Privacy Commissioner released a report a month ago that argued the social network breaches Canadian privacy law.
Facebook agreed to make changes dealing with third-party applications like quizzes and games, deactivation of accounts, the personal identification of non-users and accounts of users who die."
I'll believe it when the changes are made. Facebook really doesn't like giving your rights back.
"Going to war without the French is like going deer hunting without your accordion." ~General Norman Schwarzkopf
Jackie Chiles, of course.
Maybe now I can finally tell them to permanently delete my account from the databases. Maybe? I hope so..
From the article:
'The company also said the changes will be rolled out worldwide because some of the concerns raised in Canada have also been raised by privacy watchdogs in other countries.'
Burn Bright or Fade Away
I like broadcasting all my personal info to all sorts of commercial interests. I like being exploited by the large faceless company.
Joking aside, I suspect this will have very little in the way of practical change. For example, according to TFA the changes will among other things "Prevent games, quizzes and other applications developed by third parties from accessing information until it obtains express consent for each category of personal information." Most users aren't going to think hard about this and will simply click through repeatedly. People almost never bother reading warnings or paying much attention to them. Technological change can't do much to deal with a population that either doesn't understand or doesn't care how vulnerable it is.
Facebook agreed to make changes dealing with [...] accounts of users who die.
FTA:
Facebook has specifically agreed to: [...] Clarify in its privacy policy that it will retain a user's profile after the user dies so friends can post comments and pay tribute.
They didn't say they would protect the privacy of the dead, just that they would change the way they deal with people's profiles after they die.
I'd rather you rationally disagree than irrationally agree.
Has Canada gotten so messed up that they actually believe the dead have privacy rights?
Why not? Copyright doesn't expire on death so why should privacy?
I'd happily give Facebook my name, address, social security number, and checking account information if they would only introduce a "HIDE ALL QUIZZES" feature.
God, I am so sick of logging into Facebook only to find the feed populated with stupid quizzes like "What type of garden tool are you?" The quizzes are far more annoying than the apps.
What a radical idea. It'd have to come from a crazy place like Canada. 'Privacy'... What an odd concept. What's next? Universal healthcare?
And that was the last Terry Fox run I ever participated in.
You can tell someone who doesn't really understand reality because they refer you to Atlas Shrugged.
Another issue the privacy commissioner is dealing with will likely bring a smile to the /.'s here: the absolute pants security of RFID systems in travel documents.
The problem came to a head because the DHS in the states demanded that border-crossing documents have RFID devices with biometrics in them. We used to be able to use our driver's licenses, but now we need a passport. They wanted that flexibility back, because it's so much less hassle to get a license than a passport, so the Ontario DOT agreed to add the RFID to the new driver's licenses. It's going to be phased in, but unless you want the rubber-glove treatment, you'll want one sooner rather than later.
Everyone's been complaining about the security of these systems, but it fell on deaf ears. Until the Ontario commissioner got involved, that is. After brick-walling against the DHS she then got the Ontario DOT to issue RFID-proof wrappers with the cards. She admits they're less than ideal, thought.
The longer term solution that she wants to implement is a portion of the card that acts as a capacitive switch, only turning on the RFID when you hold it. They'll put one on the corner of the card, with a little graphic saying "hold here while reading". When it's in your pocket the RFID will be dead, so surreptitious scanning is difficult, or impossible. I thought this was a particularly elegant solution.
Canadian elections don't have to happen for up to five years. An indication that you don't like to think deeply about answers. :) Canada constitutes about 12 million facebook users. Not huge given that they have around a quarter billion users world wide, or so it is reported here in Canada. However it is enough to make a big enough dent in their profits so that change is easier than cutting off Canada from their services. Similar to how California, while having around 37 million people out of 330 million in the U.S. can still significantly influence products sold to all of the U.S. A good example is when they enact legislation mandating specific changes to say, car safety features, the auto makers don't stop selling to California. It is a big enough market that the car makers make the changes, since they are cheaper than not selling to California. It is the only reason that many safety and environmental changes made with respect to autos have been made in the U.S. Wow, a legit car example!
-- I ignore anonymous replies to my comments and postings.