Privacy concerns prompt U-turn at Facebook

**Glaswegian** · 11-30-2007, 01:17 PM

Social networking site Facebook has modified a controversial service that broadcast details of its users' online activities outside the site to their friends, following complaints about its privacy implications. The service now requires users to opt in before their actions are broadcast.

The service, called Beacon, feeds information about users' online activities at partner sites into a stream of "stories" made visible to other members of a user's social network. It also allows the partner sites to tack a "social ad" containing the user's photo onto the story, suggesting that the user endorses the partner's services.

Actions that can be broadcast in this way include purchasing a product, signing up for a service, or adding an item to a wish list. One of the first partners to use the service was Blockbuster: when a Facebook user added a movie to their queue on the blockbuster.com website, that information was transmitted to their Facebook contacts.

http://www.computerworld.com/action/...ce=rss_topic17

11-30-2007, 01:17 PM	#1 (permalink)
Glaswegian Moderator/ Rangemaster TSF Academy; Analyst, Security Team; Oor Wullie; TSF Surgeon and Resident Comic Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Glasgow Posts: 25,389 OS: Win XP Pro SP3 / Win 7 Pro My System Blog Entries: 10	Privacy concerns prompt U-turn at Facebook Social networking site Facebook has modified a controversial service that broadcast details of its users' online activities outside the site to their friends, following complaints about its privacy implications. The service now requires users to opt in before their actions are broadcast. The service, called Beacon, feeds information about users' online activities at partner sites into a stream of "stories" made visible to other members of a user's social network. It also allows the partner sites to tack a "social ad" containing the user's photo onto the story, suggesting that the user endorses the partner's services. Actions that can be broadcast in this way include purchasing a product, signing up for a service, or adding an item to a wish list. One of the first partners to use the service was Blockbuster: when a Facebook user added a movie to their queue on the blockbuster.com website, that information was transmitted to their Facebook contacts. http://www.computerworld.com/action/...ce=rss_topic17 __________________ Iain - Defender of the Haggis and all things Scottish. I don't help by PM - post in the Forums. PC Safety & Security::PC running a bit slow?::Donate::Photographers Corner