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Facebook's Plan To Automatically Share Your Data
Giosuele sends in this excerpt from TechCrunch:
"In anticipation of a slew of new features that will be launching at f8, today Facebook announced that it was once again making changes to its privacy policy. One of the biggest changes that Facebook is making involves applications and third-party websites. We've been hearing whispers from multiple sources about these changes, and the announcement all but confirms what Facebook is planning to do. In short, it sounds like Facebook is going to be automatically opting users into a reduced form of Facebook Connect on certain third party sites — a bold change that may well unnerve users, at least at first."
Letting all the users of slashdot access my friends ... I see trouble in future :P
I don't understand what is wrong with everyone on the internet. You cry about privacy but willingly give out your real-life information to these websites. Each and every one of these social networking websites exists for one purpose and that's to sell your information, your demographics to advertisers and generate revenue.
None of these sites are altruistic establishments who seek to serve the public good guarding one's privacy. At the end of the day you're engaging in opt-in Big Brother and it's far more disturbing than the advanced police state that exists in the UK and is growing in the United States of America.
Doesn't matter if you're using a throwaway freemail account because even then it's ridiculously easy to find one's real-life information. Just stop going there, delete your information and send their company a strongly-worded letter demanding they remove your information.
If you reserve the right to burden Facebook with the truth about yourself and your most sensitive information, then they reserve the right to relieve themselves of that burden by revealing it to whomever they see fit.
The e-reward for e-trust.
Orwell: "In a Time of Universal Deceit, telling the Truth is a Revolutionary Act"
Are third party sites any more capable of doing anything complex with this information than Facebook? The extent to which I noticed facebook profiled me is the ads on the side would say "free gifts if you're male, 67 years old and live in Sausageville". Let's face it (no pun intended), Facebook probably gives prospective advertisers and third-party sites looking to use profile information some complex sounding presentation about the way that break down demographics to the point that an individual can be uniquely identified 24 seconds before they even think about logging into Facebook. But really, 99% of ads are based on sex, age and where they live, I'm sure a lot more companies than Facebook know this information, I think we're somewhat over-estimating technology companies' ability to mine data. OK, once I told a FB friend to not be such a baby and they got some ads about gifts for new parents. Maybe we should have a social experiment where we try to affect the ads by what we post. "Man, I wish I could get a cheap rate mobile, easy date in my area , cartoonize myself" should be a good starting point...
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You're kidding, right? Those are the details that an identity thief needs to impersonate you. Social engineering is a well-understood art, and the people you do it to are still living in the 20th century and don't realize that everybody's birthdays and relationships are effectively public knowledge, so if you can give them that information about a person you want to impersonate, they will believe that you are that person and then give you the information you need to get the other details.
Some institutions are starting to wise up to this, but it's hard to know which institutions you do business with are wise to this, and most people don't check, even if they are among the very small percentage of people who realize they should. Do you know what your bank's information protection policy is, what an employee has to do to get fired for violating it, and whether or not that policy is actually enforced?
Whoosh.
When Facebook adds a new feature that shares my information in a new way:
(a) Share my information automatically, I can stop sharing later
(b) Do not automatically share, I can begin sharing later.
That way those who care can keep their data private or at least not be surprised by the new way their data is being shared, and those who find that they enjoy sharing their data in new ways can always be on the cutting edge.
Once you set your default, you can go back at your leisure and change the setting to share or to not share. Usually you will not have to do anything because the default sets the sharing the way you like it.
Ob Disclaimer: I don't use Facebook or any of those other new-fangled things.
We already have examples of employers that demands access to prospective worker's Facebook accounts in real life.
We do? Is that legal? Easy answer: "I don't have a facebook account". It's none of their damn business.
- Chuq
Why is it every time Facebook gets a new idea, everyone must scramble to update their settings
Because it's far easier for the site to make money that way, and they really don't care about your privacy (although it is wise for them to maintain the facade of caring).
Because most people are too stupid and / or lazy to be bothered to mess with the privacy controls. Facebook knows this, and exploits it (like many other sites) to build their pool of demographic / advertising data. That's why the controls are generally buried several menus deep and hard to find. It's no different than being subscribed to an online vendor's email newsletter by default unless you *uncheck* that box during checkout. Every time Facebook adds a new feature, it gives them another chance to add to the pool and increase their ad revenue. And you can't blame them really, being that the service is free for its users and selling ads is their primary revenue source.