Yea, I know…another blog post about Facebook and their privacy settings – they sure are getting a lot of traction out of this story huh!? I normally don’t pay too much attention to all this privacy and information sharing hoop-la, but this latest change got just enough media attention to catch my eye.
My initial reaction to this whole privacy setting thing was –
Why doesn’t facebook just default the option to [NO] and allow people to opt in or out of the new information sharing settings they implement!? I mean – shouldn’t people have a choice!?
Well the more a thought about it, and read about it the more I think it’s a non-issue…
Facebook is in the business of providing a platform for people to share information quickly and easily through their portal. In order to stay ahead of the curve and keep people interested they need to constantly alter, and add to the level of service they provide – in doing so – the way they share information is bound to change, and by defaulting everyone to [YES] they ensure that a high percentage of people are going to use their new service.
Seems like a no brainer from Facebook’s perspective…what do they have to lose?
The worst thing that happens is mainstream media picks up the story and gives facebook even more exposure than they already have. It would be interesting to look into whether facebook subscription rates have increased or decreased since this latest issue hit the news…I’m guessing it increased!
The solution is simple. When engaging in online conversation (social media)…
Don’t share sensitive information!
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This is a great follow up article from Mashable. Check it out for some great tips for protecting your privacy in Facebook.
http://mashable.com/2010/05/18/facebook-privacy-tips/