“Liking” Privacy

*I wrote this in January for an grad school application and thought it is getting more relevant as time passes and FB becomes more and more integrated... plus, I like the idea of the general population reading this and not only an advisory board too fried from reading so many apps to care. :) Enjoy!

BY: ERICA BASS Jan. 18, 2011

Last time I tuned into Pandora I learned that a girl I was Facebook “friends” with “liked” the same artist I was listening to. I haven’t spoken to her in a decade. I also haven’t updated my Facebook “friends” for real-life accuracy because of the social faux pas connected with “defriending” someone on the site. Having also become recently aware of the widespread use of the Facebook “Like” button on various third-party sites, I became uneasy. With a site commonly connected to the term “Facebook stalking,” is social media becoming too integrated and does it merit fear for consumer safety?

At Facebook’s F8 Developer Conference in April 2010, CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that the Platform Policy of only storing user data for 24 hours was eliminated. Now with the ability to store user data indefinitely, the restriction to only use data to benefit users can be easily ignored. Furthermore, the user privacy policies cannot offer complete protection when Internet tracking is simple and security breaches are common.

Now with the Open Graph Protocol in effect, different social graphs are linked together making it easier for Web sites to integrate with Facebook through Social Plugins and the embedding of “Like” buttons. It also lets users connect to physical objects -- movies, music, news articles, and workout routines -- where personal preferences and opinions are advertised throughout their friend’s list.

With the official launch of Facebook Connect this past July, users were allowed to port profile data to third-party Web sites with the use of various plugins. Login Plugins directly connect users’ accounts with the third-party site being accessed and Recommendation Plugins give personalized page and friends’ recommendations. Through the use of plugins, users do not only connect with their Facebook friends but they provide their personal information to the application’s developers. Also, with use of the “Like” button and Facebook Connect, developers gain access not only to users but to each user’s “likes” and list of friends.

Relatedly, Facebook now allows application developers to request access to users’ mobile numbers and e-mail addresses. This access is optional for users and in order for developers to gain access to the information it must be granted by the user. Nevertheless, this free flow of information and heightened integration of third-party sites is predetermining a future where privacy barriers are ever weakening. As the information gap gradually closes there will be nothing to keep hackers from accessing this information for illegal uses or even identity theft. Anonymity is no longer the basis of the Internet experience but something that must be fought for.

User tracking becomes easier as social media integration grows. Although this means endless possibilities for niche advertising, I fear the ease of accessing information might be too great, that users might be unknowingly putting themselves in danger.