WebRev Blog

This week, we've been discussing Facebook's new "open graph,"  and how many users are increasingly concerned about their privacy on the site. We discussed a couple of days ago that it is important NOT to upload your e-mail addresses to the site, and if you already have, you can ask Facebook to remove them from the friend suggestion feature, here (sign in to Facebook, first).

Another important step to protect your web-surfing privacy is to uncheck the "instant personalization" box here (sign into Facebook, first). 

You will also need to review your privacy settings and your application settings, and set them to a desirable level.  Delete any applications you are no longer using.  Also, remember, there is no need to publish your full birthdate on your profile, and doing so will make things that much easier for would-be identity theives.

Finally, the folks at ReclaimPrivacy.org have developed an open-source bookmark which can help you scan your privacy settings to alert you to any holes you may have left open.  Duct Tape Marketing has more info about how to use this tool, and Mashable and Forbes have good commentary.  As with any third-party app, use at your own risk.  I ran the tool, and was pleased with the results - it alerted me to a couple of settings I'd left unedited that I was able to fix.

(Hat-Tip for this tip to Tom Whitcomb, via Google Reader)

Jennifer Pointer (e-mail) is a trainer and tech writer in Tulsa, OK. She promotes a simple, a low-tech approach to effective online profile management, search engine optimization and social networking. Her weakness is the mocha frappuccino.

Earlier this week, I shared my most recent unpleasant experience with Facebook - in which the site is sending messages that are supposedly from me (without my knowledge) - in some cases, people I'm not even friends with on Facebook - suggesting they become friends with other people who I am friends with on Facebook.  As I might have mentioned, I'm not too happy about this, and suggested how you can prevent or stop this from happening to you.

So, enough about me...what, is happening with Facebook?

These recent policy changes are part of something Facebook is calling "open graph." 

Open graph is basically, according to Facebook's founder, meant to make it easier for software develpers to build third-party applications, and for secondary websites to glean information about users through interacting with the site, mostly for marketing purposes. 

Facebook also promises a more "personalized," experience for users.  Unfortunately, many users are outraged about just exactly how "personal," these changes are, claiming that the changes were not made sufficiently clear to the users, and that some of the policies are too invasive.

Christina Warren, of Mashable, made a prediction last month which now has a "famous last words ring" to it, in light of the furor that has erupted since: 

...Right now, it really doesn’t look like Open Graph will have any technical changes to Facebook user privacy. That said, the nature of how public information can be linked across different sites is now more robust, which makes it that much more important for the privacy-concerned to read the fine print...(more)

John Harlow, at the Times Online, summed it up best:

On Friday, as Zuckerberg celebrated his 26th birthday, he faced another tsunami of anger, this time from Facebook users who turned the socially awkward youth into the world’s youngest billionaire.

Zuckerberg wanted to enjoy his birthday in the Caribbean. Instead, the pale-faced supergeek is spending the weekend in crisis meetings in California, seeking ways to calm many of Facebook’s users who fear that website changes mean he is going to sell details of their on-line lives to the highest bidder... (more)

Also see:

• Mashable: Open Graph Personalizes the Web and What it Means for Privacy
• CNET: Facebook F8: One graph to rule them all
• TNW:  Ignore Facebook Open Graph at your Own Peril - this is Web 3.0
  
• Facebook Blog: Building the Social Web Together
• Sci-Tech Today: Angry Users Seek Better Alternatives to Facebook

Jennifer Pointer (e-mail) is a trainer and tech writer in Tulsa, OK. She promotes a simple, a low-tech approach to effective online profile management, search engine optimization and social networking. Her weakness is the mocha frappuccino.

Lesson Learned the Hard Way:  Do NOT Upload your Contacts to Facebook!

Actually, now that I'm reading that, it seems like something quite obvious.  Why, in the world, you might ask, would anyone upload their e-mail contacts to any social network?!  Well, let me tell you my story.

You see, Facebook has a feature that is part of the sign-up process, and available at any time in the right side-bar of the home page, called "Find your Friends."  This feature is a shortcut, which allows Facebook to search your e-mail contacts list to see if any of your e-mail contacts are on Facebook.  At one time (when I first started with Facebook a few years ago), there was a note on the feature that Facebook did not store your contacts.  Well, Facebook's policy has changed, and it is not only storing the contacts, but using them.

Using them for what, you might ask?  Well, we don't know the full extent of what they plan to do with the contacts, but here's one example.

Facebook has another nifty little feature called "Suggest Friends."  In the past, this was a feature you could use to help your mutual friends find each other.  You had complete control over the friend suggestions you made.  Not anymore.  Facebook is now automatically scanning the e-mail contacts you uploaded and scanning your friends, list and (at it's discretion and without your knowledg), is sending friend suggestions that appear to be from you to your e-mail contacts and Facebook friends. 

Do you have friends in your e-mail contacts and on Facebook from several different parts of your past and current life?  Do you want all of these people to become friends and talk to each other?  For that matter, do you want all of these people to receive messages from you without your permission? 

This is what has happened to me.  I'm starting to get confirmations and questions from curious friends, now, about friend suggestions that I have supposedly sent.  Friends from high school and college are getting friend requests from me that were sent without my knowlege to current friends.  The only connection between these people is that they're in my e-mail address book. Some are more embarrassing than others, and I'll probably never know about the ones that people had the kindness to just "ignore."

If you do not  this to happen to you, here's what you need to.  First, don't let Facebook scan your e-mail address list.  If it's too late for that -  Log in to Facebook, then go HERE, and request Facebook to "remove" your contacts from it's system.

Also see:  Facebook is now automatically generating friend suggestions from you.

Jennifer Pointer (e-mail) is a trainer and tech writer in Tulsa, OK. She promotes a simple, a low-tech approach to effective online profile management, search engine optimization and social networking. Her weakness is the mocha frappuccino.