Logged In or Out, Facebook Is Watching You 336
kaos07 links to this ZDNet story, according to which "Researchers at software vendor CA have discovered that social networking site Facebook is able to track the buying habits of its users on affiliated third-party sites even when they are logged out of their account or have opted out of its controversial 'Beacon' tracking service. Responding to privacy concerns, Facebook has since moved to reassure users that it only tracks and publishes data about their purchases if they are both logged in to Facebook and have opted-in to having this information listed on their profile. But in 'extremely disconcerting' findings that directly contradict these assurances, researchers at CA's Security Advisory service have found that data about these transactions are sent to Facebook regardless of a user's actions."
Re:Well (Score:1, Interesting)
"affiliated third-party sites" (Score:2, Interesting)
Re:Shocked (Score:5, Interesting)
I disabled my facebook account a few months ago because it occurred to me that someone is probably harvesting all the data that they can find off that site. Being someone who parties (too much ;-) ), I was constantly deleting tagged pictures of myself drinking off that website. I was damn glad that I did, because my BOSS at my uni went on looked at my facebook account before he hired me.
It would not suprise me if someone started offering money to purchase facebook accounts, just to harvest information, for say the price of $0.10 a friend w/ an account. I have a wild imagination, but with data mining being a really hot field, who knows what could be done with this information, it might even cost me a job in the future.
The future of privacy (or lack thereof), has me vigilant, even paranoid.
Amazon.com does something similar... (Score:2, Interesting)
Amazon.com does something similar with their website ads. I search and buy a lot at Amazon.com, and their ads on other web sites (I've noticed it at crooksandliars.com, at least) apparently read my cookies and display item suggestions that are the same or similar to items that I've searched for or purchased at Amazon.com. It doesn't matter if I've logged out of my Amazon.com account, closed and restarted my browser to clear out any active cookies, etc, the targeted advertisement results still come.
Re:Clear your cookies (Score:4, Interesting)
Not quite, your email address also gets used as a foreign key between Facebook and it's affiliates.
Fry all your cookies, but if you share an email address between your Facebook account and someone else, say Amazon, they can connect the dots that way.
Thankfully I didn't register my Facebook account with my Hotmail only-for-the-porn account. That could've made for some interesting advertising though...
Re:Clear your cookies (Score:1, Interesting)
To work around that, I'd visit Facebook pages in a separate browser installation (such as a FirefoxPortable installation) or alternatively stop all other browsing while on Facebook, and clear all cookies before and after browsing Facebook.
But that's just in theory. In practice, Facebook is a POS website, and if you use it you're probably not too bright and if you're posting all your personal info online, then this isn't high up on the list of your privacy concerns.
Re:Shocked (Score:5, Interesting)
This, good sir, is why you set privacy controls.
You're right about their data-mining though; Facebook's ads are really starting to concern me. "Single geek age 20? Visit eHarmony today!" Obviously my relationship status and age are right there in my profile, but them dynamically generating personality keywords based off of my interests and then proving them to advertisers... yeah, I should probably leave Facebook too.
Re:Unsubscribe (Score:2, Interesting)
I just wish I could delete my facebook account. It's actually close to impossible, first you have to delete all your information (wall posts, friends, etc.), and then they'll delete your account. Very, very time consuming. But I doubt any of that info is REALLY gone.
Its easier if you change all your informations into junk, then when someone looks you up on Facebook they retrieve a completely wrong information.
I just suggest you don't upload information that would harm your future prospects for jobs and such.
Re:Shocked (Score:5, Interesting)
What amazes me is that peple think that your prospective employer actually gives a crap if you party on the weekends.
Has it ever occurred to you that maybe you don't want to work somewhere who cares about that anyway? If an employer cares what an employee is doing in their off time then they have already crossed the line IMO.
Mark Zuckerberg (Score:5, Interesting)
I've often thought about the various people who have made a fortune or are about to make a fortune from online properties.
Jason Calacanis, Kevin Rose, the Flickr people, etc.
Usually I think to myself, that's awesome that these people were able to work hard and see their vision to the end and make a living from it.
When I think of Zuckerberg, I think the exact opposite. Fuck that guy. I've always felt like he sleezed his way to where he is, and stories like this only reinforce that opinion.
(prepared to be modded troll...)
Re:Shocked (Score:5, Interesting)
In a perfect world, yes. But the ideal picture of a programmer/math-dude isn't being at the end of a beer bong.
I think that once you are employed, it doesn't matter what you do on the weekends. But at a job interview, I'd rather not have someone know how I spend my Friday nights.
Re:What if it's an un-used email? (Score:5, Interesting)
With Facebook's protection of minors... I wonder if them tracking the habits of minors could get them in trouble...
CookieSafe Firefox Addon (Score:1, Interesting)
Use CookieSafe. It's like NoScript for cookie management. https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/2497
Gamefly (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Shocked (Score:3, Interesting)
Where are you getting this crap?
Facebook is a convenient way to stay in touch with people. Almost everyone there goes by their real name, and most people put actual true and useful information on their profiles (with controls over who sees it). There's negligible spam, scams and drama, and it has a useful photo app. I guess you don't use it, and think everyone on it is just trying to get a large number of "friends".
Well, Facebook was every good, though its owners seem to be doing everything they can to destroy it. I think the problem is, despite their keen user base (some large proportion of which check Facebook every day) and young-and-affluent demographics, they haven't found a way to turn all the hits into money. Selling a few ads and $1 'gifts' isn't going to pay their hardware and hosting costs. So they're selling out, biit by bit.
The situation is now no better than if they had sold out for millions a year or two ago.
Re:Shocked (Score:4, Interesting)
I once had an applicate who said "My life's goal is to be the laziest person on earth" in her myspace profile. We didn't hire her, things like that matter.
Re:Shocked (Score:1, Interesting)
Re:Shocked (Score:1, Interesting)
Re:Well What ROYALLY pissed me off earlier (Score:3, Interesting)
Im not sure im following, but I think you mean the "Add Friends" thing? Where you add your e-mail, and that e-mails password so it can log into MSN/Yahoo/Gmail and pick up your contact lists?
If so, I completely agree, I found that terrifying actually, talk about mining, they must have millions of users real e-mail and passwords for multiple chat and networking clients. Which means they could possibly know everyone you talk to online, and then six-degrees of separation.
It asks you to do that just after you "establish" your account, at least it did a year or so ago, as if it was mandatory almost, I think I just killed my browser to get out of it...Fuck That!...
Frankly, I despise Facebook with a passion, however, that doesn't stop me from having it on my SpeedDial, and visiting it multiple times a day, but its limited to random information, and I don't add any "Apps".
Plus the fact that its Google Indexed, you can search for -Your Name- in Google (among other search engines) and find your own Facebook Profile even if yours isn't participating (ie you didn't Opt-Out) in the indexing nonsense because surely at least one of your contacts has that enabled. Try it, "Bob Smith" if you have a Facebook account it'l probably show up in the 20 results of Google, especially if you have a unique name, or you added your middle name etc.
I clear my account (strip all information) then Disable it for a few weeks ever 2 months or so, till its been removed from various Indexes, then added shit again... sorta like a sick game of hide-and-seek.