Facebook Promises Privacy Tool 'Clear History'

Facebook is introducing a new privacy tool called "clear history," CEO Mark Zuckerberg said Tuesday with a personal Facebook post. From a report: The tool will allow you to see information about the apps and websites you've interacted with, and you'll be able to clear this information from your account. The news came less within hours of the kickoff keynote at on Facebook's F8 developer conference, which is being held in San Jose. The mostly-annual conference began as a time for Facebook to announce major initiatives, such as its technology to connect user's accounts with websites around the web, as well as revamped designs for user's profile pages. In a statement, Zuckerberg said, "In your web browser, you have a simple way to clear your cookies and history. The idea is a lot of sites need cookies to work, but you should still be able to flush your history whenever you want. We're building a version of this for Facebook too. It will be a simple control to clear your browsing history on Facebook -- what you've clicked on, websites you've visited, and so on."

It'll be a simple tool to clear your history

[olsmeister]

You know, all the shit we track about you that's really none of our business. Yeah, that stuff.

Re:

[Anonymous Coward]

How do we know it does anything? Watch this, reading this post will clear your Facebook history. "HISTORY CLEARED SUCCESSFULLY."

See, it's real! Hahaha. Or is it just a wizbang noisemaker telling the user it's doing something, but actually doing nothing??

Audit Facebook.

Re:It'll be a simple tool to clear your history

[taustin]

Of course it will do something. It will set the "Do not admit we track this any more" flag.

Re:

[Joce640k]

How do we know it does anything? Watch this, reading this post will clear your Facebook history. "HISTORY CLEARED SUCCESSFULLY."

You know that Europe is passing big new laws to make that illegal, right? If they do that and some employee blows a whistle on them then they're in deep trouble.

Meanwhile, the USA just watches. Where are their laws?

Re:It'll be a simple tool to clear your history

[JaredOfEuropa]

Also: what if I don't have a FB account? Will I be required to register in order to remove the browsing history they've collected?

Re:

[Alumoi]

Of course, that's the whole idea. Get more suckers to sign in.

All cookies???

[mnemotronic]

I'm assuming they only have the ability to clear browser cookies belonging to facebook-related domains.

Re:

[mnemotronic]

... read the fucking summary ...

Good suggestion

Mark Zuckerberg:

Today at our F8 conference I'm going to discuss a new privacy control we're building called "Clear History".

In your web browser, you have a simple way to clear your cookies and history. The idea is a lot of sites need cookies to work, but you should still be able to flush your history whenever you want. We're building a version of this for Facebook too. It will be a simple control to clear your browsing history on Facebook -- what you've clicked on, websites you've visi

Re:

[Joce640k]

Yeah, acting like they thought of it, that they're being good people.

They're not running scared, Nope.

Does anyone actually believe this is real?

[Rick Schumann]

Know how every elevator has 'Door Close' button? That doesn't seem to actually be connected to anything, and therefore does nothing? That's what I think this will be: it'll clear what you and others can see, but not a single byte of what Facebook stores.

Re:Does anyone actually believe this is real?

[Anonymous Coward]

You have to keep pressing the button until the door closes.

Re:

[superdave80]

But the door closes by itself after the exact same amount of time as holding the button. I've never seen it actually close the door any faster than just waiting.

Re:

[mea_culpa]

The button does serve a purpose when the fire key is inserted.

Re:

[Anonymous Coward]

Depends on the elevator and how it is configured. For some it makes no difference at all. For others it does. The one at my workplace closes several seconds faster if you press the button than if you don't.

Re:

[Provocateur]

But the door closes by itself

THIS is REAL; it is *how* you press the button. Follow these steps:

1. Aim for the button.
2. STOP! Right before the tip of your finger touches the button, you FREEZE.
3. Turn your head around to look at the passenger(s).
4. Wait for the doors to close automatically.
5. Put on your sunglasses (optional)

Try not to shake your head when the doors open.

Re:

[Known Nutter]

Totally off topic, but depending on the make/model of the elevator system the Door Close button is functional for various service modes like firefighter service, attendant service, inspection service, etc.

Re:

[JaredOfEuropa]

In some cases it even works during normal service!

Re:

[Rick Schumann]

The AC above you [slashdot.org] made me chuckle. You, sadly, made me facepalm. :-( Humor would be appreciated. ;-)

Re:

[Rick Schumann]

Yes, I am; what's your point? Do you have one? Other than the one on top of your head that is? xD xD xD

Re:

[Nidi62]

Know how every elevator has 'Door Close' button? That doesn't seem to actually be connected to anything, and therefore does nothing?

Is that anything like those bacon machines in the bathroom that always seem to be broken?

Re: Does anyone actually believe this is real?

[JonnyCalcutta]

You have to actually put your mouth to the tube for it to work. I thought this was a tech site!

Re:

[Rick Schumann]

You misunderstand; they're not broken, just out of bacon. See, they cook the bacon up fresh whenever you press the button, so when it's out of bacon all you get is a blast of hot air. Since bacon is so universally popular, it's almost impossible to keep the machine stocked with bacon. What you need to do is camp out and wait for the maintenance person to service the restroom, which is when it's restocked with fresh bacon, and get yours right away. Sometimes they forget, though, so you'd better follow the gu

Re: Does anyone actually believe this is real?

[Reverend Green]

Yup, 100% #FakeNews.

nope

[Virtucon]

It doesn't go far enough. Facebook, Intellius et al. need to be prohibited from collecting any data from anyone without an opt-in and controls as to what
they can collect and when.

Sorry, fuck off Zuck

Will a tracking cookie be needed...

[QuietLagoon]

... in order for Facebook to track who does not want to be tracked?

This won't help anything

[qzzpjs]

All your data has already been copied a thousand times to other companies. I doubt Facebook will be forcing them to delete their copies too.

Re:

[GumphMaster]

Even if it clears the current history pile, it then carries right on collecting a new one from the very next click. You are still uniquely identified and have more-or-less proven yourself a human being rather than some robot account: you may have actually increased the value of the new history.

So Facebook has a new tool?

[hyades1]

So Facebook says they now have a new tool. What happened? Did they somehow figure out a way to replace Zuckerberg?

Re:

[GumphMaster]

Well played, Sir!

Zucker Or Kim Jung

[wolfheart111]

Not sure who to believe.

Just visible/local data

[sjbe]

It will be just like deleting your browser history on your LOCAL computer or what is visible in your account. It won't do shit about the data Facebook has stored about you. That will never get deleted because that is what Facebook uses to make money.

Basically nothing to see here. Move along.

Too little, too late

[DaMattster]

Facebook is a day late and a dollar short! I am now 6 months free from Facebook and I will not be looking back ... ever.

Clears records, not the metadata

[WillAffleckUW]

All they care about is the metadata, and they already stored that.

This won't delete that.

Still a violation of Canadian Constitutional Right of Privacy and EU Right of Privacy, and FB knows that, which is why they have different platforms there.

Re:

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Re:

[account_deleted]

Comment removed based on user account deletion

Faceblock!

[kaybee]

About time we get Faceblock!

Why should I believe it?

[Opportunist]

Why should I believe that anything gets deleted at all? For all I know it could (and judging from Facebook's history would) just be hidden from view. For the user, of course, not to Facebook.

Sorry. There is nothing, literally nothing this company can do to convince anyone that they are anything but a privacy invasion.