With billions of active users, Facebook is the most popular social network in the world with an enormous social impact. One of the biggest referrals for this blog is Facebook and even though I personally don’t use it (other than to browse groups), I appreciate how important it is. Are you on Facebook?
This week we learned how others were able to acquire personal information for millions of Facebook users without their permission, interestingly, not due to a breach. Apparently this is how Facebook functions. People get to use it for free and in return, Facebook gets to harvest data about their users and sell it off for advertising and other purposes. Google and others also have such information but I’m not sure whether the founder, Mark Zuckerberg, is up to protecting people’s information. After all, in 2004 he had this to say in an instant message:
Zuck: Yeah so if you ever need info about anyone at Harvard
Zuck: Just ask
Zuck: I have over 4,000 emails, pictures, addresses, SNS
[Redacted Friend’s Name]: What? How’d you manage that one?
Zuck: People just submitted it.
Zuck: I don’t know why.
Zuck: They “trust me”
Zuck: Dumb fucks
I wonder if he took any ethics classes while at Harvard? Considering all that has happened would you ever consider not using Facebook?