Facebook and Privacy
What is the big deal with Facebook collecting data on it’s users?
Obviously not everyone is going to care if Facebook collects their information.
Many people who use Facebook regularly have already gone on record and said things like “I don’t care if they collect my data, I have nothing to hide”, but I think if more people understood what exactly Facebook is using your data for, they would feel otherwise.
Facebook’s platform is engineered to keep you on the platform; they have hundreds of employees who have dedicated their careers to figure out more ways to mesmerize your brain and keep you clicking and scrolling.
With this said, it is in their best interest to learn as much as they can about you, in order to keep you in this scrolling trance.
Obviously some people enjoy scrolling through Facebook, but for others this has become a massive problem, and for some, an addiction.
And this is not the only way they are going to use your data against you.
Facebook User Interface
To understand why Facebook has privacy policies, you have to understand what information they are collecting in the first place. To get a better picture of what Facebook is, the social media platform is the biggest of its category, grossing a total of 2.7 billion users and 2.45 billion of them use the platform every month. When signing up for Facebook, it requests a few simple pieces of information about yourself like your name, email, birthday, and gender. You then move on to more intricate information like where you're from, where you went to high school, relatives, places you've worked, etc. This information is taken to generate recommendations for new users like friends they may know already on Facebook, groups they may want to be a part of, and much more. This formula that Facebook has implemented is what gets new users to become residual users which then leads to the data they collect that people aren't the biggest fans of. Once becoming a daily user of Facebook, they start collecting data on your behavior on the platform in order for you to spend as much time on the app as possible. This data comes from what types of posts you interact with the most, what types of ads you click on the most, and what types of users you are most interested in.
What kind of information is collected?
The types of information collected by facebook can be summarized into three broad categories: information provided to them by the user, information about the devices that are connected to the facebook account, and data collected from partners of facebook. Information provided to facebook by the user includes basic information such as birthdays, pictures, locations, and people and pages you are connected to. Data about your usage, such as when you used facebook and when you last used any facebook-related products is also collected. Additionally, any information about transactions made on facebook or any of its products are also collected.
As mentioned earlier, facebook also gathers data about the devices that are linked to an account such as phones, computers, and tvs. Your device’s operating system, Wi-Fi connections, and device ID among other things can be collected by facebook. The last type of data that facebook can collect is data provided to them by their partners. Partners of facebook can include advertisers, app developers, and publishers. Information about your device, visited websites, purchases made, and ads you have seen can all be reviewed by facebook if their partners gives them access to this data.
How is the data used and what other companies it’s given to?
All of the data Facebook collects is used try to maximize the accuracy of their targeted ads. Facebook will use this data to better personalize ads for each specific user which can result in more revenue for them. They can also use this information to make suggestions about things you may be interested in, such as products, pages, and events. Even after you have left the Facebook website your data continues to be collected, information like your IP address, what browsers you’re using, and what advertisements you're clicking on elsewhere. Facebook’s data policy page provides more information about how the data they collect is used, but the main use for it is to make more personalized and applicable ads towards their users. In general, Facebook collects a lot of data about its users; probably more than they realize is being collected.
Concerns regarding Facebook’s misuse of personal data
Facebook’s history includes numerous cases of personal information being revealed, but the last couple of years have been especially concerning. Facebook’s most recent fight has been with Apple, they introduced a plan to roll out their new anti-tracking feature, requiring users to opt-in on a website or app before it can track your data. Facebook responded by urging users to opt-in to let websites track them for a “better ads experience”.
Apple has said that this feature will be available spring 2021. This comes after it was found out that WhatsApp was sending Facebook user information without their knowledge or consent. Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple, addressed Facebook in a February speech saying, “If a business is built on misleading users, data exploitation...it does not deserve our praise. It deserves reform”. You may or may not care if Facebook has your information, but you should at least be aware of how they are using it.