Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) has discontinued the privacy settings for profile pictures, cover photos, and various other private information which users formerly kept hidden, according to a report by CNET. Last week, many users got a message from the company only to realize that the largest online social networking site no longer provides an option for limiting their personal information.
More personal information on web now
Through an email, Facebook explained the settings that are used to filter what information is searchable, but personal information has been left open especially for the third party app developers.
“Your name, gender, username, user ID (account number), profile picture, cover photo and networks (if you choose to add these) are available to anyone since they are essential to helping you connect with your friends and family,” stated the Facebook help center.
Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) has been previously accused of compromising the information of itsuser, and the electronic privacy information center (EPIC) has filed a complaint with U.S. Federal Trade Commission regarding the issue. In its filling, EPIC mentioned that the one click option that was meant to disallow the third party application developers from accessing a user’s personal information has been removed.
In its FAQ, EPIC mentioned that Facebook’s revised privacy policy does not provide any protection against the large amount of personal information, irrespective of the wishes of the user.
Credit worthiness determined through friend list
Until now, only Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) user’s username and network could be accessed by anyone, but now some are concerned that third party app developers can access anyone’s friends list. According to CNN’s Katie Lobosco, at least one financial lending company uses Facebook’s friend list to determine the creditworthiness of a user. Lobosco mentioned that if those in the friends list of the user have a track record of late payment then the creditworthiness of the user slips.
Earlier changes by Facebook
Earlier, Facebook loosened the privacy policy for teens aged between 13-17. Prior to the changes, the teenagers could share posts with “friends of friends,” but they can now share their stuff with anyone across the web, which could make them vulnerable and compromise their security. Apart from Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB), sites like Twitter, YouTube and Instagram have already allowed teenagers to share their information.
