Facebook Tries To Assuage Privacy Concerns
Facebook officials are trying to address concerns raised by a German official and some users about recent privacy changes proposed by the popular social networking site.
Facebook's director of European public policy recently met with German officials to address concerns raised by German Consumer Protection Minister Ilse Aigner about the proposed changes to Facebook's privacy policies in an attempt to "clear up any confusion that may have existed," Facebook spokesman Andrew Noyes said. (Noyes is the former editor of Tech Daily Dose.)
In a blog post last month, Facebook Deputy General Counsel Michael Richter noted that among the proposed changes to its policies is the "possibility of working with some partner Web sites that we pre-approve to offer a more personalized experience at the moment you visit the site. In such instances, we would only introduce this feature with a small, select group of partners and we would also offer new controls." Last week, Barry Schnitt, director of Facebook's communications and public policy team, attempted to further explain the proposed changes in response to user feedback.
Aigner and others voiced concern over what they claim are Facebook's plans to share Facebook user data with third parties. In an open letter to Facebook, translated by Spiegel Online, Aigner complained that Facebook "user data is to be automatically passed on to third parties" unless users opt-out of such an arrangement. Noyes countered, however, that Facebook doesn't "share users' information with third parties unless users tell us to (e.g. to get a sample, hear more, or enter a contest). Any assertion to the contrary is false."
Still, Aigner called on Facebook to ensure all personal information about its members are protected at a "high level," that amendments to its terms of use are communicated to users in a "clear and straightforward manner" before changes are made, and personal data is not shared automatically with third parties for commercial use without user consent. She said she would terminate her own Facebook account unless such changes are made.
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