Following a backlash of criticism for a new policy which permits Facebook to share user data without the user’s permission, the company has posted an update clarifying their position and announcing their decision to move forward with the policy change. It’s an awkward situation for the company as no product has officially been revealed and they don’t want to disclose product features to justify their policy change.
In addition to justifying the change, the company also noticed that much of the feedback was regarding products that already exist. The reality is that users still don’t know how to use their privacy settings effectively. While users are expected to educate themselves about Facebook’s privacy platform, many users still find the system excessively confusing.
As Barry Schnitt stated in a blog post today:
For example, some of you commented, in connection with the proposed new Privacy Policy, that you’d like to be able to hide your Friends List. In fact, this is something that people already have the ability to do. We announced this feature back in December, and you can read more about it in our Help Center.
Barry also emphasized that they are still finalizing the details of how the new expanded partnerships will function, yet Facebook is insisting that it will be a small number of partners. As Schnitt states:
First, it’s important to underscore that this will be a test with a handful of carefully selected partners to provide express personalization on their sites. These partners will be pre-selected, reviewed, and bound by contracts with Facebook – much like other partners we have worked with in other contexts to deliver unique and innovative experiences. For example, we’re working with Yahoo! to integrate Facebook across their properties, AOL to integrate our chat with AIM, and we first partnered with CNN.com to make their broadcast of the Presidential Inauguration more social with the launch of the Facebook live stream application.
Honestly, I still can’t figure out a situation in which Facebook should be allowed to determine who can access my data. This method of changing the privacy policy prior to announcing the product seems like somewhat of a back door technique but we’ll have to wait until Facebook announces the partnerships later this month.
For now, users will have to standby with their pitchforks ready to find out what Facebook has in store.
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yeah..that "hide friend list thing"-that is a myth. Not possible to hide from everyone. It is now always visible to your friends.
Comment by Facebook User — April 6, 2010 @ 10:52 am
It's always visible to friends, and friends of friends. I have more problems with friends of friends being able to snoop any information I don't want them too over a stranger. A friend of a friend — a troubled person your buddy hangs with, that ex you don't want to see again, that co-worker who you don't like….
For them to say the friend list problem was fixed. Period. Was foolish, and makes them look like a bunch of asses.
Comment by Facebook User — April 6, 2010 @ 11:35 am
They're very close to breaking their trust-at which time they're finished as soon as the next usable social network hits the streets
Comment by JustMe — April 6, 2010 @ 11:43 am
I wish they would provide a universal opt out for these preferred partners – heck I wish there was an opt out so the applications my friends used didn't access my "public" information as well.
Comment by Jennifer — April 6, 2010 @ 11:56 am
You can hide your friends list by going to your Profile, on the left hand side click the little pencil on your friends section, and deselect 'Show Friend List to everyone'
To hide everything else go to "Account – Privacy Settings – Profile Information" and select 'Only Friends'
(Important) To stop your friends from sharing YOUR information go to "Privacy Settings – Applications and Websites – What your friends can share about you" and deselect all.
For your current location or city currently living in go to your Profile – Info tab, and Edit Information.
When it all comes down to it, the old rule of thumb, "If you don't want the world to see don't put in on the internet."
http://www.facebook.com/jorin
Comment by Jorin Cowley — April 6, 2010 @ 2:03 pm
"These partners will be pre-selected, reviewed, and bound by contracts with Facebook…"
Sure. When pigs fly. The abuse by business partners will always be committed in equal portions to ad space bought. The big partners will have carte blanche to buy and sell and rent anyone's private info. That's why all the info under my profile is false. I encourage others to do the same. All your friends know who you are- strangers don't have to.
Comment by Phil — April 7, 2010 @ 12:31 am
too many rules…just go back to Friendster.
Comment by bee — April 7, 2010 @ 7:46 am
Well, the Privacy Commissioner of Canada will definately be going after facebook again!
Comment by Michael Lauzon — April 7, 2010 @ 10:22 am
Jorin, people want to hide the friends list from their friends. How do we do that?
Comment by Greg — April 7, 2010 @ 9:06 pm
Jorin's email address does not work. I just tried it.
Comment by Greg — April 7, 2010 @ 9:12 pm
My comments have been erased. I wanted to make a correction in something I said. Is this topic closed?
Comment by Greg — April 7, 2010 @ 9:18 pm
Hello everybody! English is not my native language so excuse me for any mistakes.
Yesterday I changed my privacy settings so "posts by me" are not BY DEFAULT visible to a certain list of friends. That normally means that these friends can only see wall posts generated by FB (i.e. making a new friend) or posts that I make and want to share with them too.
Instead, I just found out that these friends couldn't see my Wall tab at all! Is this something happening since new granular publisher controls came out? Or just a fresh bug?
Comment by John — April 8, 2010 @ 1:11 am
@Greg
There is no option for hiding your friends list from other friends. The best option is to be selective on who you have as friends. As in life, you should have an open and transparent policy with your friends . . in my opinion anyways.
Comment by Jorin Cowley — April 8, 2010 @ 12:43 pm
All I use it for is MW anyway. Looking forward to Zynga dumping this shit hole network and opening their own servers. Most people have a chat room in yahoo, msn, icq, or skype. Soon no one will need Facebook anyway.
Comment by James W Cox — April 13, 2010 @ 5:38 am
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=10918259912...
there is no such thing as privacy on facebook. Everything is readable by other people, your private chats, your email. I have recently discovered this what with bogus profiles, pr/ad agencies, people logging into multiple accounts which are not theirs, even evidence of abuse being deleted by support, there is no such thing as a real private chat or email. In order to protect your real relationships and your real interactions do not use facebook for anything real or with any importance. Use the phone or meet in real life. The private communications cannot be trusted and it is impossible to complain about abuse and for them to respond and deal with it.
Comment by truth — May 9, 2010 @ 4:46 pm