Consumer Reports Highlights Facebook Privacy Concerns

Consumer Reports published its annual internet security and privacy report on Thursday. This year, the report featured a special section focused on the multitude of privacy issues surrounding Facebook.

Consumer Reports says they focused on Facebook because, with over 800 million users, it’s the world’s largest social network.

Their report highlights the main causes for concern regarding Facebook:

~People share too much information.

Consumer Reports projects that “4.8 million people have used Facebook to say where they planned to go on a certain day (a potential tip-off for burglars) and that 4.7 million “liked” a Facebook page about health conditions or treatments (details an insurer might use against you.)”

~ Many don’t use privacy controls.

Over a quarter of Facebook users share their wall posts with an audience wider than their friends. In addition, almost 13 million users polled by Consumer Reports say they had never set, or didn’t know about, Facebook’s privacy setting tools.

~Facebook collects more data than you think.

Every time you visit a site with a Facebook “like” button on it, Facebook gets a report with at least some information about you — even if you’ve never used Facebook, aren’t logged in, or didn’t click “like.”

~Apps are a big risk.

It is alarmingly easy to create an app on Facebook. All you need is a Facebook account and cell phone number. Experts told Consumer Reports that Facebook doesn’t need to review programming instructions before the app goes live. This means that your data can easily escape into the wrong hands through Facebook’s third-party apps. Facebook says it does watch vigilantly for misbehaving apps — but, regardless, it’s a noteworthy concern.

Another problem with Facebook apps is how easily it can collect your information. Even if you’ve carefully avoided sharing your information with an app, a friend who uses one can share your information without your knowledge. In a previous article, I detailed how you can stop this from happening.

Consumer Reports did provide some basic ways to protect yourself, at least on some level:

1) Think before you type. Even if you delete your account, some information will remain in Facebook’s computers for three months.

2) Check how your profile looks to others. You can easily see how others view your timeline. Click the arrow underneath your cover photo and select “View As.” You can then type the name of any of your friends to see how they view your page.

3) Protect basic information. Select the appropriate audience for each item on your timeline. Keep in mind that everyone can see your profile photo, timeline cover photo, and name. You cannot hide those from the public.

4) Turn off “tag suggest.” “Tag suggest” is a tool used by Facebook to recognize your face based on various biometric features. If you feel uncomfortable with Facebook collecting data about your appearance, you can turn that feature off in your privacy settings.

5) Block apps. You can control app settings in your privacy settings.

6) When all else fails, deactivate. Some of your profile data will remain but your account will be temporarily inaccessible.

To read the full Consumer Report about Facebook privacy, click here.