Facebook is spyware

[unixronin]

FaceBook claims that they don't actually keep information on your buying habits elsewhere on the Net unless you're logged in and opted in.  But recent evidence shows they still gather it all the time, even when you're logged out ... just in case you decide to opt in.

Facebook has since released a statement claiming that it has no choice but to collect the data so that it can be used should the user decide to "opt-in" to the service.

Comments

[luxobscura.livejournal.com]

Awesome! So it's a meat market *and* a cop shop. I've never used it, but I'm constantly amused by social networking sites. LJ is my only vice, in that department.

[wyrdling.livejournal.com]

creepy. is it via cookies, or what? i couldn't find the technicals of this.

i wonder what data myspace gathers.... now that i think about it, i'm not too comfortable with that idea either...

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

I don't know, offhand. I don't particularly wish to have anything to do with either one.

[wyrdling.livejournal.com]

i have family on both. my sister and bunch of other people have been asking me to get a facebook account. i don't want to. now i really don't wanna'.

i suggested she go put pictures on flickr instead....

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

We post our family photos on our own server. (Though we've been horribly remiss about keeping the albums up to date.) A lot of people we know use sites like Flickr and Smugmug, but holy galloping wads of Javascript, Batman! A Smugmug page will peg my CPU for 20 seconds or more. I've occasionally wondered what all their script code is doing, but decided I don't want to know badly enough to go look.

[skellington.livejournal.com]

Maybe this is just conspiracy theory:

http://www.campusprogress.org/features/769/what-you-dont-know-about-facebook

[luke-jaywalker.livejournal.com]

I'm inherently a bit disinclined to trust anyone who considers the Daily Kos's opinions of an entity, to be relevant.

[metahacker.livejournal.com]

How, specifically?

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

I don't specifically know. Someone speculated cookies, but I have no idea what all they install and no desire to find out.