Facebook has been taking some heat about their privacy policies again. Users are concerned about Facebook’s new open grid and how it links and shares your information with others. Facebook just wants to make the web a more open and social place. However the user’s concerns have concerned Facebook enough to have a special meeting with all of their senior staff.
These privacy concerns have led to people removing all of their information from Facebook. If you read the fine print you need to make sure you have completely deleted the information. Otherwise Facebook thinks you have just deactivated it and will keep the information there because they believe you will come to your senses and reactivate the account. One new startup has promised that they are able to keep private the information you post on their social media platform and is getting quite a bit of press for it.
What kinds of privacy issues have you encountered with your social media efforts? Are you getting photo releases from the photos of people you are posting? Are you making sure you aren’t violating any HIPAA regulations in the things you tweet? Please feel free to share in the comments section.
Privacy Settings on Facebook source: New York Times - Click for larger version
Update 5/27/10 – Facebook has rolled back their changes to privacy settings. They took time to listen to their constituents. As Facebook continues to mature and grow it will undoubtedly continue to change policies and procedures (much like us).
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