Posts Tagged ‘Facebook’
Facebook Launches Permissions for Apps and Websites
Facebook is rolling out a new feature that requires outside applications and websites to tell users exactly what parts of their profiles have to be shared for the apps to work.
Applications already had to ask users for permission to access anything in their profiles that wasn’t public. But these services didn’t have to specify what information they were using. Such information can include your photos, your friends’ birthdays or your e-mail address.
Under the new policy, the services will say which aspects of a profile they will mine, but the user still won’t be able to pick out which pieces they want to grant access to. They have to either grant permission or disallow the app from working at all.
The world’s largest online social network announced the change in April. It’s part of Facebook’s cooperation with Canada’ privacy commissioner, who has been among the sharpest critics of the company’s privacy policies.
Facebook has come under fire for the way it treats the information its nearly 500 million users post on the site. Most recently, privacy advocates and lawmakers have complained about Facebook’s “instant personalization” feature, which draws information from users’ profiles to customize a handful of other sites, including review site Yelp and the music service Pandora.
Partly because of criticism and partly because of the site’s growth from a small network for college students, Facebook’s privacy settings became complicated and often confusing over the years.
In response, Facebook simplified its privacy settings in changes unveiled last month — though some critics still say these changes don’t go far enough.
Social Networking Website Facebook Redesigns Privacy
Facebook, today, responded to user comments and concerns about privacy by announcing it will introduce simpler and more powerful controls for sharing personal information. New settings will give the more than 400 million people who use Facebook the power to control exactly who can see the information and content they share, all with just a few simple clicks. In addition, new settings will be added to make it easier to turn off third-party applications or websites. Facebook Founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg officially announced the changes in a blog post.
The company’s new privacy controls reflect wide-ranging and collaborative consultation with the office of Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) and a number of online privacy and consumer advocacy groups. Zuckerberg first announced Facebook’s intention to make these changes that detailed principles by which Facebook operates:
• People have control over how their information is shared.
• Facebook does not share personal information with people or services users don’t want.
• Facebook does not give advertisers access to people’s personal information.
• Facebook does not sell any of people’s information to anyone.
• Facebook will always be a free service for everyone.
Today’s announcement focuses on the first two of these principles.
Making Control Simple
One control for content: A new simple control makes it easy to share on Facebook with friends, friends of friends or everyone—all with just one click. The corresponding settings are immediately applied and displayed in an easy-to-understand grid. At the same time, Facebook has maintained its more granular settings for those who want to customize their level of sharing. These settings now all appear on a single page for easier access.
Retroactive control: People who choose the more restrictive “Friends Only” or “Friends of Friends” options with the simple control will have the corresponding setting for all the content they posted previously for sharing. Thus, a person can make all the content they’ve ever shared on Facebook more private with just a couple of clicks.
Future products: Facebook commits to carry over people’s privacy choices for new products that facilitate sharing. Thus, if someone chooses “Friends Only” for “Sharing on Facebook,” new products that have privacy settings will be automatically set to “Friends Only.” This means Facebook users don’t have to worry about new settings in the future.
Prioritizing simplicity: Granularity of control has always been a primary objective in Facebook’s privacy design. Starting with the changes announced today, the company will also prioritize ease-of-use in its privacy design.
Fewer privacy changes: Facebook’s goal is to make privacy-related changes with less frequency and to work within the framework announced today as it continues to innovate new features and products.
Less Publicly Available Information
Significantly less public information: Facebook has drastically reduced the amount of information that is available to everyone. This information is now limited to Name, Profile Picture (should a user choose to have one), Gender (though this can be hidden on the profile), and Networks (should the user join any).
Privacy controls for Pages: Connections to Pages, which were previously available to everyone, will have privacy settings that work for both ends of the connection. People can prevent others from seeing Pages on their profile and from seeing them in the “People who like this” boxes on the Pages themselves. Applications will also need to ask for explicit permission in order to access any of your Pages that are not visible to everyone.
Easier Opt Outs
Full control over how applications and websites on Facebook Platform access information: In response to requests, Facebook has added a simple way for people to completely turn off Platform applications and websites, so that your information is not shared with applications, even information available to everyone.
Easier opt-out of Instant Personalization Pilot Program: Facebook has also made it easier for people to turn off the instant personalization program, which prevents those, and any future, applications in the program from accessing their information.
Granular data permissions for applications and websites: Facebook also highlighted the new controls users have over information shared with applications and websites on Facebook Platform. With the new data permissions model, applications must obtain specific approval before gaining access to any personal information that a user has not made available to “Everyone.”
If you would like to know more, please call Mitul Bhavsar on +91-9825095314 or visit www.designwebgraphic.com for any outsource website designing requirement.
Twitter, Facebook to Save the World
The Obama Administration, which is making maximum use of social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter in governance, feels these are “effective tools” that can enhance diplomacy.
Top officials of the Obama Administration are seen twitting round the clock and various wings of the US government have now dedicated team for sites like Twitter, Facebook and Flickr.
“We think that 21st century diplomacy involves a combination of capabilities – one, having the Secretary go around the world and talk face-to-face to leaders, but also have the ability to communicate with populations around the world through a variety of means, including social media,” State Department spokesman P J Crowley said.
He said the US believed that the use of Facebook and Twitter in governance would be worth emulating by other countries.
Crowley, who tweets very frequently, says he has some 2,000 followers.
“We recognised from the outset that these are effective tools that enhance diplomacy. The Secretary (of State Hillary Clinton) has spoken about this. Under Secretary Judith McHale is leading this effort.
“We not only have the ability through social networking to communicate with governments, most importantly, we have the ability to communicate with people,” he said.
“…that is a powerful tool, and around the world we’re using it to clarify the position of the United States, but we’re also using it to help solve challenges that – in the places that the Secretary has visited,” Crowley noted.
“Absolutely, we are using these tools quite effectively. People are able to follow the Secretary and her travels at State.gov,” he said.
Noting that half of the population in Indonesia is on Facebook, Crowley said that becomes an important tool in terms of the emergence of democratic societies and accountable governments so that people can use social media to communicate to a government.
“We are working in Mexico, for example, where people can use cell phones and texting to communicate to the government where they have concerns about corruption.
If you would like to know more, please call Mitul Bhavsar on +91-9825095314 or visit www.designwebgraphic.com for any outsource website designing requirement.
Facebook is Now In a Relationship With Farmville
Despite recent rumors that the company responsible for Farmville may split from Facebook, Zynga and Facebook yesterday announced that the two had signed a five-year contract.
Previous reports suggested that Zynga was fed up with Facebook’s antics engineered to pressure the social gaming site into signing a contract that would turn Farmville and other games into Facebook-only titles. However, although the terms of the agreement were not disclosed to the press, it would seem the two have made amends. Whereas before sources said Zynga CEO Mark Pincus was preparing to split from Facebook, he now seems quite happy about the whole affair.
“Facebook was a pioneer in opening their platform in 2007 and in just three years tens of millions of Facebook users play our games everyday, from FarmVille and Cafe World to Treasure Isle and Mafia Wars,” said Pincus. “We are excited about Facebook’s long-term commitment to social gaming and Zynga, and look forward to working with them and other platform providers to bring the best social gaming experience to users worldwide.”
Zynga describes the agreement as a “five-year strategic relationship that increases both Facebook and Zynga’s shared commitment to social gaming.” The deal will also expand the use of the all important Facebook Credits in Zynga’s games.
If you would like to know more, please call Mitul Bhavsar on +91-9825095314 or visit www.designwebgraphic.com for any offshore web design requirement.
Facebook Makes Tagging Pictures MUCH Easier
Facebook makes photo tagging much easier using face detection technology. The new feature is still in the testing phase and is available for use by a select few Facebook users.
The new technology automatically selects the face in a picture and generates a list asking you “Whose Face Is This?” instead of the current, cumbersome method of clicking on faces and then browsing through the list. This is the same technology that digital cameras use for face detection. Now what would be REALLY cool is if the face detection evolves into facial recognition, i.e. knowing which friend it is without you having to select.