Filed under: Business, Internet, Web services, Social Software, web 2.0
Facebook shifts advertising privacy policy
Ever since Facebook announced its advertising platform earlier this month, people have been wondering if the service isn't a bit of an invasion of privacy.Now it looks like Facebook has backtracked a bit after hearing complaints from users. The response makes sense. It's hard to capitalize on your huge popularity as a social network to launch an advertising platform if the users are threatening to leave. And more than 50,000 Facebook members have signed a petition complaining about Facebook Beacon.
In a nutshell, Beacon lets Facebook send messages to users letting them know that their friends bought concert or movie tickets or other goods online. Current Facebook members are already probably sick of receiving messages letting them know when a friend signs up for any new Facebook application, whether it be Scrabulous or a Zombie tag game. But once you start reporting people's buying habits, well, that's kind of crossing a line, isn't it?
The petition asked for the right to opt-out of the program easily. Yesterday Facebook responded by saying Beacon would become an opt-in program. Each time Facebook wants to send out a Beacon message, the service will ask users for permission first.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
William said 11:52AM on 11-30-2007
But Facebook has also said that they expect their users to eventually get used to Beacon; Facebook sees it as a natural extension of how people already recommend books and movies. So I'm guessing we'll see Facebook try to make another attempt at making it get accepted in a widespread manner, hopefully not in an insidious manner.
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Geoff said 3:25PM on 11-30-2007
I'm pretty sure Facebook said it would ask for permission -- twice -- since day one. It said when you make the purchase on the partner's site, it'll ask to send the info out on Facebook, then when you sign in to Facebook, it'll prompt you again. I don't see why everyone's freaked out over this.
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William said 12:14PM on 12-03-2007
Everyone is [was] freaked out because Facebook made it an opt-out process, not an opt-in process. So people who didn't want to [or didn't know about Beacon] participate in Beacon were automatically included. And the checkbox to opt-out would disappear, so if you didn't notice it in time, too bad.
Last week, Facebook said they made Beacon opt-in, but over the weekend, PCworld.com discovered that whether or not you're signed in to Facebook, if you visit a participating Beacon partner website, it still sends information back to Facebook about your purchase. Worse still, if you have a cookie with your Facebook username [by checking the "Remember me" box on the sign-in page] on your computer, it sends the purchase information tied to your username. Even if you're NOT signed in to Facebook.
While Facebook may change Beacon yet again, large companies like Coca-Cola are holding off until user backlash dies down or something else changes. Either way, Facebook definitely engaged in [and may still be engaging in] some potentially shady actions with their users and their data.
burnblue said 9:52AM on 12-01-2007
From my observations, people have freaked out about every single thing Facebook does, then taken to it like bees to honey later on.
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inkblob said 1:50PM on 11-30-2007
the main concern I have with beacon is that fb is even knowing what someone is doing on another website. fb should stay in it's corner and not observe, comment, and integrate itself into browsing outside of it's own sphere. great, you can opt out or in whether it shows up in a newsfeed, it should have a master switch where you can say don't watch me. I don't care whether that is by default opt in or out but it should be in place and not as a per site or session contract.
this isn't people making their own bed so shut up and sleep in it. this is a precedent where a social networking site is acting on it's own initiative and without permission ( for the most part towards registered members who signed up before this was put into place ) to watch your behaviours.
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