Privacy becoming a Dream....

[unsetld]

source:www.eff.org

Since its incorporation just over five years ago, Facebook has undergone a remarkable transformation. When it started, it was a private space for communication with a group of your choice. Soon, it transformed into a platform where much of your information is public by default. Today, it has become a platform where you have no choice but to make certain information public, and this public information may be shared by Facebook with its partner websites and used to target ads.

To help illustrate Facebook's shift away from privacy, we have highlighted some excerpts from Facebook's privacy policies over the years. Watch closely as your privacy disappears, one small change at a time!

Facebook Privacy Policy circa 2005:

No personal information that you submit to Thefacebook will be available to any user of the Web Site who does not belong to at least one of the groups specified by you in your privacy settings.

Facebook Privacy Policy circa 2006:

We understand you may not want everyone in the world to have the information you share on Facebook; that is why we give you control of your information. Our default privacy settings limit the information displayed in your profile to your school, your specified local area, and other reasonable community limitations that we tell you about.

Facebook Privacy Policy circa 2007:

Profile information you submit to Facebook will be available to users of Facebook who belong to at least one of the networks you allow to access the information through your privacy settings (e.g., school, geography, friends of friends). Your name, school name, and profile picture thumbnail will be available in search results across the Facebook network unless you alter your privacy settings.

Facebook Privacy Policy circa November 2009:

Facebook is designed to make it easy for you to share your information with anyone you want. You decide how much information you feel comfortable sharing on Facebook and you control how it is distributed through your privacy settings. You should review the default privacy settings and change them if necessary to reflect your preferences. You should also consider your settings whenever you share information. ...

Information set to “everyone” is publicly available information, may be accessed by everyone on the Internet (including people not logged into Facebook), is subject to indexing by third party search engines, may be associated with you outside of Facebook (such as when you visit other sites on the internet), and may be imported and exported by us and others without privacy limitations. The default privacy setting for certain types of information you post on Facebook is set to “everyone.” You can review and change the default settings in your privacy settings.

Facebook Privacy Policy circa December 2009:

Certain categories of information such as your name, profile photo, list of friends and pages you are a fan of, gender, geographic region, and networks you belong to are considered publicly available to everyone, including Facebook-enhanced applications, and therefore do not have privacy settings. You can, however, limit the ability of others to find this information through search using your search privacy settings.

Current Facebook Privacy Policy, as of April 2010:

When you connect with an application or website it will have access to General Information about you. The term General Information includes your and your friends’ names, profile pictures, gender, user IDs, connections, and any content shared using the Everyone privacy setting. ... The default privacy setting for certain types of information you post on Facebook is set to “everyone.” ... Because it takes two to connect, your privacy settings only control who can see the connection on your profile page. If you are uncomfortable with the connection being publicly available, you should consider removing (or not making) the connection.

Viewed together, the successive policies tell a clear story. Facebook originally earned its core base of users by offering them simple and powerful controls over their personal information. As Facebook grew larger and became more important, it could have chosen to maintain or improve those controls. Instead, it's slowly but surely helped itself — and its advertising and business partners — to more and more of its users' information, while limiting the users' options to control their own information.



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Has the time come yet we stop using facebook or are we awaiting for our bankruptcy of our personal data....................

[rajeevk]

Facebook has privacy issues but we don't have an option right now. Now a days everyone is affected by the social media virus and Google+ is still not so big that it can compete with Facebook.

[buddyram]

People are so hooked up to FaceBook, wherein they are not bothered about their privacy issues.

[pravinbv]

The worst case is with Google and everyone is screaming about Facebook. Facebook just share and retain the information You share. Google is spying, stealing, keeping watch on you and no one have single word against. Great.

[ferris]

Originally Posted by rajeevk

Facebook has privacy issues but we don't have an option right now. Now a days everyone is affected by the social media virus and Google+ is still not so big that it can compete with Facebook.

You realy think google+ is/would be better (at least after a while).

Facebook obviously really changed over the course of time. But if you want privacy and only your friends to actually see what you post and share it is still posible. Of course it takes some efford to get all the settings right and think about it in everyday posting, but you can still have some sort of privacy.

[noob]

Originally Posted by pravinbv

The worst case is with Google and everyone is screaming about Facebook. Facebook just share and retain the information You share. Google is spying, stealing, keeping watch on you and no one have single word against. Great.

LOL ?

[Extreme Gamer]

Originally Posted by pravinbv

The worst case is with Google and everyone is screaming about Facebook. Facebook just share and retain the information You share. Google is spying, stealing, keeping watch on you and no one have single word against. Great.

Google is stealing? Wow.

I am not on their social network (or any other for that matter). So I doubt they are stealing my data.

Facebook says that your data will be sold to anyone and everyone.

Google states that any data collected will never be given without your consent.

[Liverpool_fan]

Privacy in the internet is a myth.

[Krow]

Originally Posted by Extreme Gamer

Google is stealing? Wow.

I am not on their social network (or any other for that matter). So I doubt they are stealing my data.

www.google.com/history

Enabled by default in most cases. No need to give data to anyone. Show ads similar to your searches. Done.

[Vyom]

Anyone who expects their so called "privacy" to be maintained on FB, is a ________"

Fill in the blanks with any obscene word.

[Prime_Coder]

Privacy in the internet is a myth.

+1. Correctly said.

[Charan]

I have deleted my facebook account due the privacy issue it can cause. I got tired of educating my friends and family about the privacy issues in social networks.

[pravinbv]

Originally Posted by Extreme Gamer

Google is stealing? Wow.

I am not on their social network (or any other for that matter). So I doubt they are stealing my data.

Facebook says that your data will be sold to anyone and everyone.

Google states that any data collected will never be given without your consent.

Now that's really funny. I can give you thousand of links and report that prove everything i have claimed.
But you can take help of your Google for that. Just search for the terms like
"Google Tracking" or Google Spying or
this one
Google Toolbar Tracks Browsing Even After Users Choose "Disable"
Google's Omnibox could be Pandora's box | Beyond Binary - CNET News

Give it a try. Though I am not saying that Facebook and others are Good but worst is the Google that also very silently. Just imagine how the ads are displayed in your email context same as the topic or your email? Not just this if you searched today for say "Baby Toy" even after 10 day whatever you browse in internet using your Google DI same targeted ads for "Baby Toy" will be displayed. Don't you think is possible. Its true.

[Rishab2oo]

Originally Posted by Charan

I have deleted my facebook account due the privacy issue it can cause. I got tired of educating my friends and family about the privacy issues in social networks.

How did you deleted your Facebook account. I tried the same but it can be re-activated by just entering e-mail and password, it's like logging in after a short time period.

[Charan]

Originally Posted by Rishab2oo

How did you deleted your Facebook account. I tried the same but it can be re-activated by just entering e-mail and password, it's like logging in after a short time period.

check the FAQ here How do I permanently delete my account? - Facebook Help Center | Facebook

[Extreme Gamer]

Originally Posted by pravinbv

Now that's really funny. I can give you thousand of links and report that prove everything i have claimed.
But you can take help of your Google for that. Just search for the terms like
"Google Tracking" or Google Spying or
this one
Google Toolbar Tracks Browsing Even After Users Choose "Disable"
Google's Omnibox could be Pandora's box | Beyond Binary - CNET News

Give it a try. Though I am not saying that Facebook and others are Good but worst is the Google that also very silently. Just imagine how the ads are displayed in your email context same as the topic or your email? Not just this if you searched today for say "Baby Toy" even after 10 day whatever you browse in internet using your Google DI same targeted ads for "Baby Toy" will be displayed. Don't you think is possible. Its true.

But I dont use that toolbar lol

[Charan]

I wish infra_red_dude was here.

[ferris]

Of course all FB does use your data, but it just a matter of what you share and what you don't.

If you are posting each and every information about your life you can quickly have a privacy issue, but if you are a little careful about what you actually get out there I don't see any bigger issue yet.

[gameranand]

Well for privacy you can always select the group with which you want to share that particular data.

[pravinbv]

Now you got that?
Google privacy policy change is a proof that it is spying evryone.
Read this. Google's Privacy Update: What You Need to Know

Originally Posted by Extreme Gamer

Google is stealing? Wow.

I am not on their social network (or any other for that matter). So I doubt they are stealing my data.

Facebook says that your data will be sold to anyone and everyone.

Google states that any data collected will never be given without your consent.

Now you got that. Google is a big Spy. It is already doing all that it is now going to do legally.
Read this. Google's Privacy Update: What You Need to Know

[whitestar_999]

don't login into any google account while browsing/searching in same browser.use one browser exclusively for checking into your google accounts(preferably in a private/incognito mode) & another for all other purposes.this should take care of most of the issues.

[Prime_Coder]

You should get to know what happens when you use services from Google.

Please visit this site to know how it works:
Google track you. We don't. An illustrated Guide.

[d6bmg]

Originally Posted by Prime_Coder

You should get to know what happens when you use services from Google.

Please visit this site to know how it works:
Google track you. We don't. An illustrated Guide.

Think about the bright side. You, not only you but every user, gets the previledge from google without which we can't even live one day. So, even if they track out habits to improve their ad-sense, its their right to do so.

[Neuron]

Deleted my old and ugly orkut account.

[tkin]

That's why I don't use even a single facebook app, too risky.

[d6bmg]

Originally Posted by Neuron

Deleted my old and ugly orkut account.

You still have /have to use your gmail account.

[whitestar_999]

risk is only for those who share too much.also remember that we live in India where compared to developed nations only a very small % of total population spend a significant amount of money online.when it comes to spending amount >10000 most prefer going to actual shop or major well known brand both of which do not depend as much on online ads as others.even google knows this.

[whitestar_999]

LOL.@unsetld,take it easy,it's just google.if you don't like it don't use it as simple as that.google is not obliged to listen to people & neither are people obliged to use google services.

[coolpcguy]

we should start boycotting google products and let us show whos the boss.

What're you waiting for?

[Charan]

I will stop using the Google products. it will take some time to for the migration.

First step: removed Google as my search engines in my browser.
Second step: remove chrome from my home computer.