Sneaky Ways Facebook Gathers Our Data & Why It’s Time to Delete Our Accounts

Facebook is like that kid stealing cookies from the cookie jar.

It became a habit for the company to steal our data first and apologize later, if and when we somehow learn about it. Things will get even worse once Facebook merges the backends of Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp and Instagram DMs and strengthens its grip on billions of users.

Here are just five 5 cases where Facebook has been caught with its hand in users’ cookie jars.

1. Sponsored stories

We all love checking our friends’ Facebook stories. Nothing harmful can come from that, right? Well, don’t forget the 2011 Sponsored Stories case.

Facebook launched Sponsored Stories ads that let companies such as Nike and Coca-Cola create ads based on user comments, check-ins or photos, with no option for users to opt out. Users were outraged at having their content used so directly to make Facebook money and sued. Because Facebook gathered user information without consent and made people watch sponsored stories, they ultimately were fined $9 million in damages to 614,000 people.

2. Shadow profiles

Rep. Ben Lujan accused Mark Zuckerberg of collecting data on people who are not Facebook users and never had the option to agree to the platform’s privacy policy, referring to so-called “shadow profiles.”

With shadow profiles, Facebook can collect a person’s data without consent, even if they don’t have a Facebook page. Here’s how it works: If one of your connections who has only interacted with you online through an email address uses the “Find my friends” feature, Facebook collects all the information about you associated with that connection: your alternative email address, home address, phone number, and more.

3. Teen volunteers

This case is the scariest! Facebook paid teenage volunteers to let Facebook gather their highly personal data with no parental consent. The teenagers were instructed to upload an app that monitored their online actions, web searches, locations and even private messages.

Facebook’s attempt to distance itself from the app by choosing a different name for it obviously didn’t help. They’ve now been exposed for targeting young people and tracking their actions to sell ads.

4. Safe VPN

In 2013, Facebook touted an app that offered a safe VPN service supposed to protect user data and block harmful websites. But, as reported by Apple, the app had been gathering user data and actions on the sites. The product created by Facebook was eventually removed from the store for violating Apple’s privacy policies.

5. Android users

After the Cambridge Analytica scandal, Facebook decided to allow its users to download all the data collected on them. Users who did were shocked to discover that Facebook read their SMS metadata and even call logs. Android users could see the entire history of their calls, including details such as call duration, contact name and call time.

When asked about this, Facebook said it asked for user permission before getting access to call logs, but claimed that Android permissions are too complicated and tricky to understand what specific information is being stored.

Don’t expect Facebook to change.

These cases are not going to be the last ones. Facebook has the power and confidence that it will survive any data scandal. The monopolization of the social media market insulates Facebook and a few other big players from their unethical acts.

We can try to be patient and wait for a change of the company management or stricter regulations for social media giants. But let’s be realistic. We’ve already lost this case.

As a way to show their protest, some Facebook users from Europe and the U.S. have been deleting their accounts. But, as the shadow profile case show, even if we don’t use Facebook, our data can still be snatched.

Are we all doomed?

Yes, I also watched that episode of “Black Mirror,” and no, there is no need to panic. As technology advances so does its potential to control us. But we don’t have to be radical or go live in the woods to protect our privacy.

There are companies out there who actually want to keep the online world safe and private for all of us. POP is one of them. They’re creating a private social media space for everyone who wants to protect their data and private content. Initiatives like this make social media companies feel uneasy.

Join POP to be part of the social media revolution!

Request early access: https://postopoly.app/