FB & Data

There have been too much hue and cry on the subject of Face Book (FB) and Data thefts. FB’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg was grilled by US Congress last week. Yesterday  FB  tried to clarify how t collects the data when people are not directly using the website or app. There are many websites and app which use FB services to make their content  and ads  more authentic and engaging with the users.Apps and websites which uses FB services, send  FB information to make  their content and ads better. In return for that information FB helps these websites serve up relevant ads and receive analytics that help them understand how people use their services. When a person visit a site or app that uses FB services, we receive information even if you are logged out or do not have a FB account. This is because of pother sites and apps do not know who is using FB.

Many companies offer these type of services and, like FB, they also receive information  from the apps and sites that use them. Twitter, Pinterest & Linkedin all have similar  Like and Share buttons to help people share things on their services.

The total process is like this : when you visit a site, your browser (like Chrome,Firebox or Explorer) sends a request to the particular site’s server. The browser share your IP address so that the website knows where on the internet to send the sit content. The website also gets the information about the   browser and operating system( eg Windows or Android) you are using because not all browser and devices support the same features. It also get cookies, which are identifiers that website use to know if you have earlier visited  the same site. This can help with things like saving items in your shopping cart.

So when a website uses FB services, user’s browser sends the same kind of information to FB as the website receives FB also get information about which website or app user is using, which is necessary for FB to know, when to apply their tools. FB says that there are three main ways in which they use the information it gts from other apps and websites, and three ways are- Providing FB’s services to these sites and apps, improving safety and security on FB and enhancing FB’s own products and services. In the process ,it so happened that  the personal data of FB promoter & CEO Mark Zuckerberg was also improperly shared with political consultancy firm Cambridge Analytica.

FB in a statement also said that ” We don’t sell the data. We use the data that the people put into the system in order to make them relevant, and finally FB believes that it is people who own their content.

You must have also observed  on the internet whenever you sign for new app, the app site administrator ask so many information, including they might ask you to give them your permission to use your phone locations and we readily accept those conditions, in a hurry to use that or website, and as mentioned above that information can be accessed by  website administration and the same can be misused also. So in the end it is so obvious that your personal data is not safe on the net, so one must be careful while providing the data, never mention your political preference,and other personal preferences. I was just reading a episode on FB only, where one person share his experience, he says” he called his office from his cell phone to find out about availability of certain item on the internet, he was shocked that within an hour a On line selling company  sending the details to him  on his email.” It only means that someone was listening to his phone calls otherwise how it was possible.” Really baffling.

Awaiting your views/comments/feed backs.

Friends,  this is my 200th blog. I thank all of you for your support and encouragement.