Maybe Mark Zuckerberg Shouldn’t Get All the Blame: Your Facebook Privacy Settings and Apps Others Use
Sure you could #deletefacebook — But Start With #checkyoursettings
Facebook and I go way back. There was a time, very brief actually, when I gave my all- that was at the the beginning. But now, I admit, I am a controlled FB user. One day a week, on my personal account, keep it under an hour. I practice Tech Wellness after all. Balance with Technology in all ways sums up my relationship.
And though we don’t see each other much, I think Facebook is amazing.
No longer just a thumbs-up, but heart or sad/angry face makes commenting so easy and fun. The communication, fast, powerful and dense. Facebook is lush and enticing.
I think my fellow FB’rs would agree, Mark Zuckerberg, your little software program and its brethren have turned a lot of people into extremely efficient, hyper-distracted over-sharers.
And even more amazing than reconnecting with people you don’t remember from High School (or your Mom, depending on your generation), this whole thing is FREE. Gratis. No charge.
But you know what my Dad used to say? “Babe, if it seems like it’s true good to be true, it probably is.”
In this case, the too-good-to-be trueness of it all is that all my Facebook fun can’t just be for my friends and me. Turns out it’s also super fun for all kinds of people we don’t know, who are excited to learn all about us, without even telling us.
And you know who told me?
Facebook did.
Facebook and I are in a very open relationship. You are too. And about a billion other people right along with us. Here are the rules of engagement: In exchange for free dopamine, Facebook only asks for “your information” in return.
Now when you read “your information,” you probably think “zip code.” But actually zip code is more Google territory; they’re good at tangibles like that. Facebook’s got access to all that simple stuff, plus your likes your dislikes, your intimate thoughts, your race, whether or not you’re pregnant or just had a baby, or if you bought an iphone recently; your education, your religion, your operating system, your pets, whether or not you work for the government, if you’re a stay at home Mom, if your rent or own your home, if you have housemates and/or if your adult children have moved back in — again. Here’s a complete list of current Facebook ad targeting options. https://www.closerscafe.com/facebook-ad-targeting-options-infographic/
Read it and then give me that McCaulley Caulken “Home Alone” face.
Mark Zuckerberg shouldn’t take all the blame. Facebook is fairly open about this sort of thing. Just go into your account settings as I did and see for yourself.
A year ago Tech Wellness created the Ultimate Facebook Guide to Privacy Settings and that’s when I realized how forthright(or sometimes not) Facebook is.
They flat out told me they wanted to know — and share — just about everything about me. It was mind boggling actually. The list includes every communication, the content of every message, even where and when a photo I posted was taken. They said they were collecting stuff like what I was looking at and who I was talking to and how long I was visiting and how often.
But, they told me, they wouldn’t be giving all this stuff about me and what I do on Facebook to anyone with my actual name or address. They said my information would be anonymous. Well good. Of course it would be.
They did say that they would be transferring my information to all kinds of people and companies, however. I did a double take when they said it would go to partners that globally support their business, even though they said that the “partners had to adhere to strict confidentiality obligations.” Still, I was a little hesitant.
But don’t worry, Facebook says, all my activities on the platform, along with my name, address and “personally identifiable” information ONLY gets into the hands of companies and advertisers when I give my permission.
And at this point you’re thinking, like I was, “I just won’t give my permission then. Problem solved.”
So, I looked and looked for where the “Give Permission for Companies to Know Everything August Brice posts, likes, looks at, uploads and plays” Button.
And I finally found it.
You’re probably thinking this permission would be kept under Privacy Settings, right? I know I did. But after a fair amount of poking around, I finally found them in the “Apps” section. It starts with the “Platform” This is the magical connection that all the other apps and sites use that allows us to “log on” or Connect Through Facebook.
No doubt you’ve seen this message hundreds of times by now. It seems to be an option on just every site or game or app I visit. It’s SO easy- But Facebook told me, this is where the privacy breakdown starts. . . this is a quote:
“It allows Facebook to receive information about your use of third party apps and websites to provide you with better and more customized experiences”
Hmmmm. Ok, I get it. The other App or site knows my name and FB has all my information and they go about sharing. Yeah, that’s not so good.
But they were super clear and upfront about it:
“On Facebook, your name, profile picture, cover photo, gender, networks, username, and user id are always publicly available to both people and apps. Learn Why”
Are you curious? Don’t you want to learn why? This is where Facebook really didn’t give me a straight answer. This page told me What, How, Where, but no actual Why.
This is pretty much the answer to why — but it was under the How section:
To Show and measure ads and services. Facebook told me it wants to make the Face Book service and experience better and oh, oh yeah-Facebook says it’s so they can show me ads on AND off Facebook.
So, no platform for me.
No sir, I’m not fallin for that one. Whew, safe.
Except for the next part-
Details lie innocently in something that sounds like a setting I really shouldn’t even care about:
Apps Others Use
Guess what!? Facebook told me that when my FB friends use other apps they “take my information with them” Say what?
Oh, yes, of course, my information. My name, religious preference, my posts- there’s a detailed list of 13 items — from my birthday to when I’m online.
My friends, unknowingly I’d say, give these private morsels about me to the 3rd party websites and apps they visit when they log in through FB.
But, Facebook let me toggle each one off.
I did.
And then I told everyone I knew. I think I told my kids and my husband and my good friends waaay too many times, because they we’re like yeah, yah. Yah.
Facebook and I did all this contemplating and discovery about a year ago and my lovely TechWellness created the guide so anyone who wanted to could exercise their power. It’s a beast. It covers it. I feel better.
And ya know what, I still like Mark. But, I’d really like that one privacy button.
Be Well!
August
