The facebook privacy policy, or lack thereof, should be a pressing issue for all facebook users. Many users do not know that whatever is said on walls, uploaded, or commented on is owned by facebook. When you sign up for the service most people just click I accept the terms of the privacy policy without really taking a look. Well what they do not know can really hurt them in the long run. When applying for jobs and such employers can view any pictures or inappropriate groups to see if you would be an ideal employee. Most people on facebook have things they would not want their employers seeing.
In the privacy policy on facebook there is a section about how they use the information. They use it for personalizing advertisements to target the user. For example on my facebook they advertise a lot of clothes and shoes and specifically say for 19 year-olds. Also “some information” is public to help “friends find you.” This is where the “privacy” policy looses its security. The information is shared to anyone on facebook that could be your friend. There is no safety in this.
I work at a summer camp and I’ve had campers friend me who are younger than the “required” minimum age of 13. These girls are very vulnerable and probably do not even know it. A lot of these kids will friend people they don’t even know because to them facebook is a popularity contest. Some of them have over a thousand friends! The general public needs to be aware of this issue to help prevent the easy access to these young kids.
Overall the facebook privacy policy does barely anything for its users. Even if you decide to “delete” your facebook it will never permanently be gone. Facebook saves everything and anything you’ve done. They claim to save your account “in case” you want to reactivate it at a later date. This is both good and bad because they still have all of your data and can use it to your disadvantage.
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