FakeBook Sign Off

[Red Badger]

Only a few hundred thousand people took the survey. Millions of others got their information exposed as a consequence. This includes enough information to infer political affiliation, sensitive lifestyle choices (being gay) etc ..

Those millions of people did not opt-in.




One example: Egypt has used social media postings to arrest LGBTQ citizens. Yes, it is naive to think even secure channels are really secure, but like I said: many people are only now waking up.

If it was only ads, nobody cares. We've created a panopticon surveillance society, and people are only now waking up to that reality.

Even those that do not want to participate because they see the dangers are sucked in.

This was what I meant to convey as OP (but missed the mark). I don't give a sh!t about targeted ads. I care very much about surrendering our privacy rights without a shot being fired. A group of very brilliant men saw fit to include it (privacy) in the Bill of Rights; and for very good cause. I believe the day will come when society realizes it gave away far more that it gained.

Secondary concern is the targeted misinformation exactly like that engaged in by FakeBook and it's affiliates. Sleazy business practice at best.

 

[marko]

This was what I meant to convey as OP (but missed the mark). I don't give a sh!t about targeted ads. I care very much about surrendering our privacy rights without a shot being fired. A group of very brilliant men saw fit to include it (privacy) in the Bill of Rights; and for very good cause. I believe the day will come when society realizes it gave away far more that it gained.

Secondary concern is the targeted misinformation exactly like that engaged in by FakeBook and it's affiliates. Sleazy business practice at best.

Agree. Somewhat off topic but slightly connected is the news of the serial killer in CA caught because his relatives had submitted their DNA to a genome company.

Sort of the same thing in a way; you don't have to submit a thing for someone to learn a lot about you.

 

[meierlde]

If people think Facebook is handing out your personal data and is an issue (targeted ads?), how about my SS number being my Medicare ID number and having EVERY doctor, hospital, pharmacy, insurance company, and drug company I use (or have interacted with) having it, and all my other personal information? Hello....!

Of course with the new medicare cards in the process of being mailed out this will cease to be an issue as they will use a made up id. It will take up to a year to get this done.

 

[easysurfer]

Agree. Somewhat off topic but slightly connected is the news of the serial killer in CA caught because his relatives had submitted their DNA to a genome company.

Sort of the same thing in a way; you don't have to submit a thing for someone to learn a lot about you.

This is a fascinating case. One on how he got caught. Also, that he was an ex-cop who didn't leave any evidence like fingerprints. Little did he know that one day, he'd be tracked by DNA.

I'm sure the cops use social media to narrow down associates of suspects. See who they are FB friends and families of.

Just saw on the morning news yesterday a mention of how FB's matching algorithm ended up matching extremists as suggested friends since they have that common interest .

 

[Midpack]

I’m in the suspicious camp too. “They” say they only use aggregate data, but they have to have individual data to do that. I suspect some use individual data now, or will at some point. There are plenty of bad actors who will if they haven’t already. Google, presumably a good actor, has gotten way more aggressive in its data mining activity. As they look for ways to continue growth, will they and others share private data even more? It’s not just Google, they’re just an example.

And while we can choose to stay off Facebook and other social media sites, we have little choice in other applications - search and email being obvious examples. I can ignore FB, but it would be hard to avoid search or email. I’ve looked at safer options, DuckDuckGo for search for example, unfortunately it’s no where near as useful as Google, Bing, etc. The safe options will never be as good as they try to match the for huge profit sites.

And while I am not too concerned about what the apps I choose to use do with my data themselves, it’s the second and third party entities that get a hold of our data that concern me. YMMV

For those who think the trade off is worth it, fine and dandy. You could be right, or blissfully unaware, time will tell.

 

[athena53]

I’m in the suspicious camp too. “They” say they only use aggregate data, but they have to have individual data to do that. I suspect some use individual data now, or will at some point. There are plenty of bad actors who will if they haven’t already.

They don't really need your name. If you want to be paranoid, read Julia Angwin's "Dragnet Nation". She points out that you can pretty much be identified by the locations from which you post; typically it's either at home or at work. Even if you don't enable Location on your phone (and I don't unless I need it), it's always pinging local cell towers. The device you use is also highly personal- no one uses my phone but me and, since I live alone, 99% of what passes through my Wi-Fi server (which has an individual code identifying it) applies to me.

So- they don't need your name. I can be "Person who uses Server xxxxx.xxx.xxxx" and they still know a heck of a lot about me.

 

[easysurfer]

There was a story (once again, on the morning news) a few weeks back I think after the FB thing, where a reporter tried to buy something and not get tracked somehow. He did succeed but had to jump through hoops masking himself, I think like buying burner phones, using different accounts. Mainly, was not an easy task.

My strategy is I know can't hide totally, unless I drop off from technology. But try to share as less as possible. I still use FB, but don't put stuff like DOB, work and school history on my profile. I use Duck Duck Go as my main search engine. Thought I'd really miss Google search but most of the time for me, Duck Duck Go gets the job done. (Though I do use Google news as my home page and like their Street View for maps). Future, I will try to use Microsoft only when needed.

Need for public knowledge vs need for individual privacy? That is the question .

 

[LuckyDog]

DW and I have never used it and likely never will...

 

[kcowan]

Been on FB since 2009. I downloaded what they had on me. 68GB of zipped stuff. I was truly amazed. e.g. the FB details of everyone who sent me a friend request, even though I did not accept it. Every video presented on FB including ones by message that I did not view. When I stopped following people. On and on.

I would be considered a light user. Quick scan and poke around once a day or less. Not a lot of posting.

 

[ncbill]

This is a fascinating case. One on how he got caught. Also, that he was an ex-cop who didn't leave any evidence like fingerprints. Little did he know that one day, he'd be tracked by DNA.

I'm sure the cops use social media to narrow down associates of suspects. See who they are FB friends and families of.

Just saw on the morning news yesterday a mention of how FB's matching algorithm ended up matching extremists as suggested friends since they have that common interest .

The police went to (and got DNA from) at least one other male (in a nursing home, IIRC) before arresting the ex-cop.

So I'm not convinced the one arrested is the right guy...though from what the neighbors say he does seem mean enough.

As for Facebook, kids' school had bullying problems with it from the get-go, so we never allowed them to have any social media accounts, nor do we have any.

Probably a good thing considering how much time I waste on various internet forums...

 

[easysurfer]

The police went to (and got DNA from) at least one other male (in a nursing home, IIRC) before arresting the ex-cop.

So I'm not convinced the one arrested is the right guy...though from what the neighbors say he does seem mean enough.

As for Facebook, kids' school had bullying problems with it from the get-go, so we never allowed them to have any social media accounts, nor do we have any.

Probably a good thing considering how much time I waste on various internet forums...

Didn't the police end up collecting DNA from the ex-cop with something that he tossed out? Mental note...if you are a serial killer, be careful what you toss .

I'm surprised there is so little on how to filter out problem social media from a user point of view. Doesn't seem like a level playing field. Sad to hear in news about kids harming themselves due to bullying. Makes me wonder if they knew how to block or filter.

I would never get Twitter as the purpose of that seems is to get in arguments.

 

[Midpack]

They don't really need your name. If you want to be paranoid, read Julia Angwin's "Dragnet Nation". She points out that you can pretty much be identified by the locations from which you post; typically it's either at home or at work. Even if you don't enable Location on your phone (and I don't unless I need it), it's always pinging local cell towers. The device you use is also highly personal- no one uses my phone but me and, since I live alone, 99% of what passes through my Wi-Fi server (which has an individual code identifying it) applies to me.

So- they don't need your name. I can be "Person who uses Server xxxxx.xxx.xxxx" and they still know a heck of a lot about me.

I didn’t say anything about a name per se, it’s all the other personal data I’m worried about. I always use an alias anyway...

 

[ERD50]

When you say "yet to hear of....sent to a labor camp for posting something a politician in power didn't want to hear." I suspect you're talking about current times as a result of something posted on FB/Twitter etc. and not 75 years ago.
(sentence structure can sometimes be misread)....

Yes, now as a result of social media (in the US, or other 'free' countries), not comparing to 75 years ago.

What we do see every day however are jobs lost, careers ruined and marriages strained as a result of social media getting into the wrong hands. "CBS News has obtained the private emails of....". ....

But 'CBS obtaining private emails' isn't what we are talking about, is it? Facebook, or Google (to my knowledge) Isn't making your private emails available to anyone. Yes, they may have algorithms to scan them to obtain info for advertising purposes, but they're not sending the raw emails to anyone (correct me if you have evidence to the contrary).

If CBS news 'obtained private emails', it was done illegally, or through a FOI request on info obtained with a search warrant, or business related emails of government workers (which might be considered to be the property of the public). Are you saying Google would just handover my emails to the media?

If I'm going to post disturbing info on my social media page (aggressively/threateningly racist for example), and my employer sees it, and either has a clause in my employment contract about how I present myself in public (there's a term for that I can't think of, an ethics clause or something), or just determines that will create a hostile work environment, I could be fired. I may have the right to freedom of speech, but my employer generally has the right to hire who they want, and generally will want to have a good work environment for all their employees. If I threaten that, I'm gone.

-ERD50

 

[CaptTom]

...I’ve looked at safer options, DuckDuckGo for search for example, unfortunately it’s no where near as useful as Google, Bing, etc. The safe options will never be as good as they try to match the for huge profit sites.

Interesting. I switched to DuckDuckGo and barely noticed any difference. Sometimes for specialized searches I go back to Google, but that's rare, and most people don't know how anyway. I've always found Bing useless.

The police went to (and got DNA from) at least one other male (in a nursing home, IIRC) before arresting the ex-cop.

So I'm not convinced the one arrested is the right guy...though from what the neighbors say he does seem mean enough.

They don't have to convince you, just the jurors. DNA evidence is very good.

It was a very different type of DNA test, and quite a while ago, the first time. Basically, at that time they had a very limited pool of DNA (IIRC convicted felons or something) and a very limited test, which could only give them the most general hints. They checked out one hint in more detail, and it didn't pan out.

The fact that the detailed DNA test successfully exonerated the first suspect does more to prove its reliability, than disprove it.

 

[joeea]

so we never allowed them to have any social media accounts, nor do we have any.

Does anyone consider this forum to be "social media"?
Does the presence of ads custom tailored based on your browsing habits bother anyone?
Did you "tell the truth" on your Profile page here?

 

[USA]

I use Duck Duck Go as my main search engine. :.

+1

 

[Bestwifeever]

Right now someone is working on my house and mentioned a couple of facts about his son without naming him or giving me any identifying information. As an experiment for this thread, I ran a plain vanilla google search of the dad’s name and just one fact about his son and boom, one page led to another and I know the kid’s name, college, gpa, mom’s date of death, etc., etc. Interestingly, son didn’t have a FB page pop up—perhaps he’s guarding his privacy....

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

I have been off of FB for a going on 3 years (if I recall, I dumped it not too long after I retired...early 2015, maybe?) and haven't missed it. I was never too concerned about them "selling my data" as I didn't really share much on it at all...actually, nothing really...I even used initials for my first name. BUT...I know that if you use a "free" online product, then you are going to get targeted ads. And trust me, Google knows way, WAY more about me than I would prefer to not acknowledge.

But...the biggest reason to can FB for me? It was a huge time suck with very little to zero reward. It was the same people posting the same crap. And when a friend mentioned how his wife was on FB first thing when she got up in the morning and again on it the last thing before going to sleep...it occurred to me that if you aren't careful, it can consume your life.

Life is short and I prefer to enjoy it as much as I can and FB doesn't do that for me.

 

[easysurfer]

Interesting. I switched to DuckDuckGo and barely noticed any difference. Sometimes for specialized searches I go back to Google, but that's rare, and most people don't know how anyway. I've always found Bing useless.

....

An alternative also is to use Start Page which uses Google but doesn't identitfy back to the end user. A best of both worlds if you want to search with Google but some privacy along the way.

I haven't pursued Start Page as am happy enough with DuckDuckGo.

Does anyone consider this forum to be "social media"?
Does the presence of ads custom tailored based on your browsing habits bother anyone?
Did you "tell the truth" on your Profile page here?

Yes, I count this forum as social media. I try not to overshare here also .

With uBlock Origin ad blocker, I don't see any ads here .

Yep, I told the truth...maybe .

 

[aja8888]

Of course with the new medicare cards in the process of being mailed out this will cease to be an issue as they will use a made up id. It will take up to a year to get this done.

And the medical facilities won't ask for your SS number too now? At least the ID card part will be fixed....

 

[JoeWras]

Because we post with IP addresses, it is very conceivable that someone could correlate we "anonymous" with real people.


I once was concerned about someone here dropping off and I innocently put in their screen name with a tiny bit of other data and got a deep link hit on their real name. It is easy to accidentally leave bread-crumbs like this.


And then there are the IP address correlators. Sure they may correlate your roommate or family member too, but eventually it can be figured out.

 

[meierlde]

Because we post with IP addresses, it is very conceivable that someone could correlate we "anonymous" with real people.


I once was concerned about someone here dropping off and I innocently put in their screen name with a tiny bit of other data and got a deep link hit on their real name. It is easy to accidentally leave bread-crumbs like this.


And then there are the IP address correlators. Sure they may correlate your roommate or family member too, but eventually it can be figured out.

If your ISP uses DHCP rather than a fixed address which a lot do, then about all they can tell is the ISP you use. Unless you pay for a fixed IP address, most ISPs prefer DHCP to their modems since for example if you go on vacation the address might go to someone else during your absence if the modem is turned off.
From :Computer Forensics: Tracking an Offender | Internet Fundamentals | InformIT

"IP address can be statically or dynamically assigned. Computers that are assigned a static IP address always use the same IP address until it is manually changed to a new address, which is becoming increasingly less convenient in a time of constant reorganizations and mobile computers. Dynamic addresses are automatically assigned to a computer when it registers itself on a network using a protocol called Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) or Windows Internet Naming Service (WINS), a Microsoft protocol that is rapidly becoming obsolete. For network administrators, DHCP neatly solves the tedium and confusion of manually assigning constantly moving Internet devices. Virtually all ISPs use DHCP to assign addresses to their dial-up customers, and many permanently connected home users have dynamically assigned addresses that can change whenever their cable modems are powered off and on. Use of DHCP is definitely on the increase, but unfortunately, DHCP makes detective work a little more difficult."

AS noted if you power off your modem for a while or the power goes out you may get a new IP address. (If your behind a router you may also use a local dhcp server on the in home network, which may have an IP address of 192.168.1.x (of which there are likley millions of boxes with each address as the router converts these local addresses to routeable addresses thru something called NAT. This is partly why the old IPv4 still works a lot of devices sit behind routers/firewalls that do the conversion. If you have more than one device connected to the internet you likley use local dhcp as well.

 

[easysurfer]

...


I once was concerned about someone here dropping off and I innocently put in their screen name with a tiny bit of other data and got a deep link hit on their real name. It is easy to accidentally leave bread-crumbs like this.


...

Hey! Now this is getting a bit creepy .

 

[Totoro]

Interesting. I switched to DuckDuckGo and barely noticed any difference. Sometimes for specialized searches I go back to Google, but that's rare, and most people don't know how anyway. I've always found Bing useless.

I’ve looked at safer options, DuckDuckGo for search for example, unfortunately it’s no where near as useful as Google, Bing, etc. The safe options will never be as good as they try to match the for huge profit sites.

The traditional search function of DuckDuckGo relies on Bing, Yandex & Google (via Yahoo) in the backend.

 

[WestUniversity]

Deleted my Facebook account in light of all of the issues of late as well as the fact it’s a huge time waster...