Longtime users of the social networking site Facebook are used to radical changes in user interface, features and policies, though that doesn’t prevent them from becoming livid every time another update is rolled out. Some changes provide new, useful features such as the integration of Skype’s video chat service that allows over 800 million users to see the person they’re talking to in real time. Google’s Plus social network added a similar service, called Hangouts, which are essentially a social media style of conference call, letting users video chat with up to 9 other people at once. The conference call has become a crucial component of today’s business networking system of ritual communication, and the Social Media networks are starting to get on board. It seems that, in order for Facebook to remain at the top of the social networking pyramid, it will have to constantly, consistently innovate, opening up new platforms for third-party developers while it seeks to provide its own new features to users. The recent changes to Open Graph and the replacement of the old user profile with the Timeline are definitely some of the wildest changes made so far, but in order for the Open Graph platform to work for developers some privacy changes were required that will likely confuse and worry many users. In August, Facebook simplified privacy settings, allowing users to hide their profiles and activities or fine-tune who is allowed to see what information with a few simple menu choices. Unfortunately, the new Open Graph updates and the addition of the Timeline introduce other privacy concerns. Facebook’s privacy policies and controls seem to be ever-shifting and are largely reactions to users’ concerns.
Privacy Problems
During his keynote speech at the F8 Developers Conference, Mark Zuckerberg kept talking about the new “frictionless experience” users would be given by the next big updates to the site. Citing pop up application permission windows as frustrating for users, he declared that the process would be streamlined, resulting in a one-time dialogue window that would establish settings that would be remembered by applications and allow users to perform whatever actions they wish without worrying about pop ups distracting them. One consequence of this update, however, is that people will be sharing more of their information with the site, often without realizing it. Shared links, comments and uses of the “Like” button will show up in the new Ticker at the top right of the screen, but so will other, newer notifications, such as which songs someone listens to on Spotify or which articles they read on a Facebook-integrated news site. Because users will only be asked once if they want to allow an application to post to their profile, users will likely end up sharing information they don’t want to share without even realizing it.
User Control
Facebook recently revamped its privacy controls so extensively that the company decided it was necessary to require all users to go through a tutorial detailing how to use the new settings. The visibility of Facebook profiles can be fine-tuned, as can the information available to specific groups or people. Additionally, each post has a simple, easily understood icon that will show at a glance whether a piece of information is viewable by everyone, friends, or no one else. The tighter, more fine-tuned controls provided by the privacy settings menu are also much easier to navigate, with a simpler interface and easy to understand privacy presets.
Users have been given an upgrade when it comes to privacy controls on the world’s largest social network, but that may not be enough to protect them when the Open Graph updates roll out. Many users will likely be unaware of the amount of information being shared or how to turn it off.
