Does Facebook Privacy Actually Exist?

The question of whether privacy really exists on Facebook is an important one that is on everyone’s mind. Privacy on the Internet is a hot button in general but when it comes to Facebook, it is especially sensitive.

If you are a person who cares deeply about your online privacy and wants to guard what you say to whom and to make sure that your words are not read by the wrong person, don’t use Facebook. People tend to use Facebook comfortably and freely and forget that everyone can read whatever they post there.

Several months ago, Facebook added its “Like” feature, which is available for all websites to place on their content, and which permits anyone with a Facebook profile to “Like” anything that is on the Internet, anywhere, and gives them the opportunity to connect with the things that they care about. If you are signed onto your Facebook account, you have immediate personalization. Your interests and the interests of your contacts are shared and used to make your experience more personal.

When Facebook first added the “Like” feature, within a matter of a few weeks, thousands of businesses added the “Like” button to their company websites. The gathering of information almost seems too easy. When someone visits the website or web page, Facebook collects the website address that is being visited and the Internet address of the visitor is collected as soon as the page is loaded.

Regarding the issue of privacy, Facebook claims that this information is made anonymous three months after it is collected and is not shared with or sold to other people. However, the privacy advocates are not happy with the fact that information is being collected by Facebook regardless of whether the user gives permission or not.

Opting out

Even if you opt out (don’t agree) of sharing your information with other people, it can still be shared by your friends to adjoining websites. That is the default setting. If you want to opt out, you have to do more work to make that happen. You have to block each adjoining website. Many people are asking that the latter be the default setting, which would be the most ethical thing to do.

The many settings

Originally, Facebook users had to go through 50 different settings to make their shared information private. After a great deal of negative attention, Facebook revised the feature last spring and now there are only 15 different settings. 

What is Facebook’s position?

Facebook says that many more people are worried about being charged a fee in the near future for using Facebook than about their privacy. According to Facebook, there is little change in the statistics from the users since the privacy policy was instituted. That is even after the much-publicized “Quit Facebook Day.”

As we speak, Facebook claims to be continually working on making the privacy settings simpler. However, they still stick to the idea that their users want to share their information, especially if they feel as thought they are in control.

Conclusion

The fact remains that no matter what, passionate Facebook users will continue to use Facebook. With approximately 500 million users, it is one of the most popular social media channels. There are many people who feel that they would rather be able to use Facebook freely than to be limited by rules. However, with that said, the privacy issue is a huge one for Facebook and will continue to be a sensitive issue for many people.