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Author Topic: Question about Facebook  (Read 35550 times)

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« on: May 25, 2010, 17:24 »
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It's the second time it happens.

My Facebook account uses one of those "extra" addresses Yahoo Mail allows us to create and not my main Yahoo Mail address.  Today I got an email addressed to my main Yahoo Mail address, as if someone had written me from Facebook ("Jeweel Kanaan" <[email protected]>), with a layout that looks like Facebook invitations (as far as I remember) and with a link to join his network.  Of course, I don't know her (and the text is one of those spams of some rich African who died in an accident and they need help to recover his fortune).

Moreover - and this is what really surprises me and the reason why I'm writing you - at the end of the message there is a list "Other people you may know on Facebook:" and some are indeed people of my acquaintace, and from these some of them in fact are already in my network through that other address I use for FB, others are people to whom I send and receive email using my main address - but how would FB know these FB members are friends of mine, or actually people I have exchanged emails with? 


« Reply #1 on: May 25, 2010, 17:36 »
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donding

  • Think before you speak
« Reply #2 on: May 25, 2010, 17:39 »
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That makes you want to have a face lift.. :D

« Reply #3 on: May 25, 2010, 18:17 »
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FB is an evil Big Brother system .. I created a new account last year to keep for personal use and before I even added a single friend FB suggested 3 non-immediate relatives that I had no clue were on facebook. It was a tad bit creepy. LOL

donding

  • Think before you speak
« Reply #4 on: May 25, 2010, 18:27 »
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I just opened up an account about two weeks ago and it did kinda freak me out when I saw all the names of my relatives!!

« Reply #5 on: May 25, 2010, 19:56 »
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But what puzzles me is that FB doesn't have my main email address, to which this spam was sent.  Well, they have in a way, because some people used it to invite me to their network (then I searched them and added them, but not clicking on the invitation link).  But with just an email address, never used in FB, how could they find other people I know, who are not related to me and some even live in another country?

Could Yahoo be the culprit?  Yahoo knows the email of people I communicate with, even if not in my address list (those in question are not in my address list).  I've never used that feature "Find People You Email" that has a connection with Yahoo.

I know there is a lot of problem with FB, but I tend to believe this is Yahoo, which is even more concerning.

« Reply #6 on: May 25, 2010, 22:06 »
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And still people ask me why I don't have a FB account...  ???

« Reply #7 on: May 26, 2010, 02:24 »
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But what puzzles me is that FB doesn't have my main email address, to which this spam was sent.

These sites and especially FB have a very sneaky way of doing it. If somebody on your (main) email signs up, FB asks if they want to invite more "friends". FB then asks their email password (for instance on Yahoo) and it explores everybody in their address book and even who sent them email. FB stores these addresses to build a network, and you might be amazed how many people there might be in there you'd rather avoid. FB just doesn't care about any privacy. They want your real name and it's almost impossible to cancel your account.

For Zuckerberg, the boss of FB, his users are "dumb f@cks". Here is a chat session of Zuckerberg with a friend, that asked him how he had so much info about his (then 4000) users. (source Business Insider - FB didn't deny the authenticity)
Quote
Zuck: Yeah so if you ever need info about anyone at Harvard
Zuck: Just ask.
Zuck: I have over 4,000 emails, pictures, addresses, SMS
Vriend: What? How'd you manage that one?
Zuck: People just submitted it.
Zuck: I don't know why.
Zuck: They "trust me"
Zuck: Dumb f@cks.

10 Reasons To Delete Your Facebook Account (Business Insider)
Thanks to this article, I found the very well hidden link to delete my FB account, not just "deactivate" it.

« Reply #8 on: May 26, 2010, 06:30 »
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Could Yahoo be the culprit?  Yahoo knows the email of people I communicate with, even if not in my address list (those in question are not in my address list).  I've never used that feature "Find People You Email" that has a connection with Yahoo.

FB is viral marketing at its best. Every time you have a friend or friend of a friend, depending on how your privacy is set up, FB draws upon ALL those contacts, their emails, their fans, their friends, their groups, etc.

« Reply #9 on: May 26, 2010, 07:35 »
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If you want to put the Facebook privacy policy into context: http://www.businessinsider.com/well-these-new-zuckerberg-ims-wont-help-facebooks-privacy-problems-2010-5

The bottom line is that publicly they "care" - but in reality their business model is all about using your personal details to sell advertising. This advertising is all the more valuable because they can target your individual preferences from information that you give them:

- all your friends
- all your interests
- how you interact with your friends
- what you talk to them about (ie. your messages)
- where you log in from (ie. your ip address)
- what sort of system you're using (eg. OSX, what browser, what screen)
- everywhere you've been logged in from
etc.

Lets face it facebook has more information about more people than any intelligence agency ever had.

« Reply #10 on: May 26, 2010, 11:14 »
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To ge back to the OP's question, the spam emails aren't actually coming from facebook so they could target any email adress. They just use facebook's limited security to try to fool people into signing up with someone they don't know. I received a similar email as well. The delete button is your friend.

Regards,

John

donding

  • Think before you speak
« Reply #11 on: May 26, 2010, 12:05 »
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But what puzzles me is that FB doesn't have my main email address, to which this spam was sent.

These sites and especially FB have a very sneaky way of doing it. If somebody on your (main) email signs up, FB asks if they want to invite more "friends". FB then asks their email password (for instance on Yahoo) and it explores everybody in their address book and even who sent them email. FB stores these addresses to build a network, and you might be amazed how many people there might be in there you'd rather avoid. FB just doesn't care about any privacy. They want your real name and it's almost impossible to cancel your account.

For Zuckerberg, the boss of FB, his users are "dumb f@cks". Here is a chat session of Zuckerberg with a friend, that asked him how he had so much info about his (then 4000) users. (source Business Insider - FB didn't deny the authenticity)
Quote
Zuck: Yeah so if you ever need info about anyone at Harvard
Zuck: Just ask.
Zuck: I have over 4,000 emails, pictures, addresses, SMS
Vriend: What? How'd you manage that one?
Zuck: People just submitted it.
Zuck: I don't know why.
Zuck: They "trust me"
Zuck: Dumb f@cks.

10 Reasons To Delete Your Facebook Account (Business Insider)
Thanks to this article, I found the very well hidden link to delete my FB account, not just "deactivate" it.


Very interesting reading but I found it ironic that at the bottom of the piece was an ad for facebook... ???

« Reply #12 on: May 26, 2010, 15:02 »
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If somebody on your (main) email signs up, FB asks if they want to invite more "friends". FB then asks their email password (for instance on Yahoo) and it explores everybody in their address book and even who sent them email.
I know that, but how can they search my friend A's address book and find that I have a friend B who is also at FB, if A and B do not know each other?

« Reply #13 on: May 26, 2010, 15:22 »
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They use alien technology .. I saw it on the discovery channel.  ;D

« Reply #14 on: May 26, 2010, 16:17 »
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I just canned my FB account. What is really bad is you have to keep it in a deactivated state for 2 weeks before they actually delete it. Like you somehow need a cooling off period in case you really don't mean it. I had enough of watching some "friend" play Farmville.

RacePhoto

« Reply #15 on: May 26, 2010, 21:43 »
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I just canned my FB account. What is really bad is you have to keep it in a deactivated state for 2 weeks before they actually delete it. Like you somehow need a cooling off period in case you really don't mean it. I had enough of watching some "friend" play Farmville.

So you didn't find the button to Block This Application, easier than closing your account? Just block Farmville, all invitations and notices disappear. Same for the rest of the games. One request from someone for you to join or sending you a gift, you just hit Block This Application, done deal.

Speaking of deactivated files that still are on a website, how about some stock agencies that seem to keep them forever? That's not just information, that we provided, by the way, but our images!

Answering the OP. FB doesn't know your other email address, one of your friends does and they typed it in the add a friend field or had their address book dumped into FaceBook. Not very smart!

Here's the message a new member gets. (with the email account name removed) So the hoaxer, scammer, Nigerian, dead rich relative, just has a big email list and adds a FB account, gets the new member link and sends the scam out via Friend Finder. It comes from FB and looks legit, but it's the same old garbage delivered in a different package.

Use the automatic Friend Finder for "[email protected]". Now it will be easier than ever to share and connect with your friends.
   
Use our Friend Finder to find your email contacts on Facebook
Find Friends
Thanks,
The Facebook Team


My least liked feature on FB is the invite friends to join "groupname" which most of the time turns out to be a hoax or some spam. :(
« Last Edit: May 26, 2010, 21:48 by RacePhoto »

« Reply #16 on: May 26, 2010, 22:41 »
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I just canned my FB account. What is really bad is you have to keep it in a deactivated state for 2 weeks before they actually delete it. Like you somehow need a cooling off period in case you really don't mean it. I had enough of watching some "friend" play Farmville.

LOL yeah we have those apps blocked on all our FB accounts. They annoy the crap out of me. I have one personal FB account that I could live without but I'd die without the business ones.

« Reply #17 on: May 27, 2010, 01:57 »
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I know that, but how can they search my friend A's address book and find that I have a friend B who is also at FB, if A and B do not know each other?
That's the sneaky part. You have to assume that when FB walks through the address book of a (new) subscriber, they keep the harvested email addresses, even if those people are not on FB. If someone else signs up, they'll do the same, saving the addresses of non-FB members. They don't use those for direct spam, but to construct networks that go beyond the FB members. That's why they are so amazing (they are!) in suggesting who you might know. Freaky...

« Reply #18 on: May 27, 2010, 04:23 »
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I'm going to pull the plug on facebook too - seems about the right time: http://www.quitfacebookday.com/ May 31.

Planning on sending a message to everyone on my account to let them know, then going to go the full hog and delete on the 31st.

« Reply #19 on: May 27, 2010, 05:51 »
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LOL yeah we have those apps blocked on all our FB accounts. They annoy the crap out of me. I have one personal FB account that I could live without but I'd die without the business ones.

Question about the personal/business accounts. I first had a personal account. Then I wanted to created a Page for my cathyslife (business) stuff. The cathyslife page is tied to my personal account and personal friends. I never wanted it to be but couldn't find a way to separate the two. Meaning I don't necessarily want my family to be fans of my business site. Short of creating (and I think you have to pay for) an ad to bring in more fans, is there a way to have a separate business account?

« Reply #20 on: May 27, 2010, 06:01 »
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I'm going to pull the plug on facebook too - seems about the right time: http://www.quitfacebookday.com/ May 31.

Planning on sending a message to everyone on my account to let them know, then going to go the full hog and delete on the 31st.


I'm a little disgusted with facebook myself, but not sure if I'm ready to quit.

I went to your link above and read the spiel, but this is what really annoys me. This site is asking for your email address and name, too. Which means they are gathering data and likely harvesting in some way! Which is just as bad as facebook! Even worse, there are no privacy controls on the quitfacebookday site, that I can see.

« Reply #21 on: May 27, 2010, 06:15 »
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I decided to cancel my FB account few days ago, and now I will do it for real. There is no any privacy on FB (especially since last december). Now, everyone who send you a friend request can see all your pictures that other friends can see, as well as your friends photos.
FB became one big village where everyone knows everything about everyone, and I don't like it.
Once, some 8 months ago, some female model contacted me on gmail and asked if I can arrange a photo session with her. She found my email address on my website. But as she lives in UK, I explained her that I can't do it, and that was the only conversation  between us. But, 6 months after it, I saw a notification on FB saying: "People you may know"... and her name after it.
So, FB knows that her and I  exchanged one email 6 months before. For me, that is a reason to be concerned.
I will go right away to my account and cancel it.

« Reply #22 on: May 27, 2010, 09:59 »
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I'm going to pull the plug on facebook too - seems about the right time: http://www.quitfacebookday.com/ May 31.

Planning on sending a message to everyone on my account to let them know, then going to go the full hog and delete on the 31st.


I'm a little disgusted with facebook myself, but not sure if I'm ready to quit.

I went to your link above and read the spiel, but this is what really annoys me. This site is asking for your email address and name, too. Which means they are gathering data and likely harvesting in some way! Which is just as bad as facebook! Even worse, there are no privacy controls on the quitfacebookday site, that I can see.


Yeah that occurred to me too - very ironic really. Needless to say I didn't enter my details there. 

The problem with facebook is that its so addictive. One of the reasons I'm doing it is to try to force myself to communicate in more meaningful ways with a wider group of friends, not just those who are there.

I also don't like the idea of sites like this crawling your emails and messages with bots to generate advertising - I could be wrong but I think gmail does it too ... in a way its very creepy.

donding

  • Think before you speak
« Reply #23 on: May 27, 2010, 10:22 »
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Go and deactivate....DELETE???...your account then sign back in and it will automatically reactivate just by you signing in. You can not delete it unless there is a button besides deactivate that I could not find. Try it and you will discover that it will reactivate it just by signing in, you don't have to go to your account setting to do it..it does it for you.

« Reply #24 on: May 27, 2010, 10:29 »
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Go and deactivate....DELETE???...your account then sign back in and it will automatically reactivate just by you signing in. You can not delete it unless there is a button besides deactivate that I could not find. Try it and you will discover that it will reactivate it just by signing in, you don't have to go to your account setting to do it..it does it for you.

https://ssl.facebook.com/help/contact.php?show_form=delete_account&__a=3

« Reply #25 on: May 27, 2010, 11:13 »
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I just canned my FB account. What is really bad is you have to keep it in a deactivated state for 2 weeks before they actually delete it. Like you somehow need a cooling off period in case you really don't mean it. I had enough of watching some "friend" play Farmville.

So you didn't find the button to Block This Application, easier than closing your account? Just block Farmville, all invitations and notices disappear. Same for the rest of the games. One request from someone for you to join or sending you a gift, you just hit Block This Application, done deal.


Hi, Yes sure the button is obvious enough. Mine was a general comment on the level of what is said on Facebook. None of the intelligent people that I converse with on this and other forums or by email or in real life ever say anything on FB. So this begs the question why waste even a minute there. It's just about all mindless.

donding

  • Think before you speak
« Reply #26 on: May 27, 2010, 11:26 »
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Go and deactivate....DELETE???...your account then sign back in and it will automatically reactivate just by you signing in. You can not delete it unless there is a button besides deactivate that I could not find. Try it and you will discover that it will reactivate it just by signing in, you don't have to go to your account setting to do it..it does it for you.

https://ssl.facebook.com/help/contact.php?show_form=delete_account&__a=3

Help me out here...maybe I'm just down right stupid, but I deactivated my account and when I click on that link, it takes me to the sign on page. When you enter you name and password it takes you to your account which is then reactivated with all the information still present. If it was deleted then I should not have been able to sign in. It should have shown no account found.

« Reply #27 on: May 27, 2010, 11:48 »
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Go and deactivate....DELETE???...your account then sign back in and it will automatically reactivate just by you signing in. You can not delete it unless there is a button besides deactivate that I could not find. Try it and you will discover that it will reactivate it just by signing in, you don't have to go to your account setting to do it..it does it for you.

https://ssl.facebook.com/help/contact.php?show_form=delete_account&__a=3

Help me out here...maybe I'm just down right stupid, but I deactivated my account and when I click on that link, it takes me to the sign on page. When you enter you name and password it takes you to your account which is then reactivated with all the information still present. If it was deleted then I should not have been able to sign in. It should have shown no account found.

This is what sis so irritating and arrogant about FB. Once you "delete" the account it takes 2 weeks for the account to actually be deleted. If you try and sign in for some reason then you go back to square one and have to delete it again.

donding

  • Think before you speak
« Reply #28 on: May 27, 2010, 11:53 »
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This is what sis so irritating and arrogant about FB. Once you "delete" the account it takes 2 weeks for the account to actually be deleted. If you try and sign in for some reason then you go back to square one and have to delete it again.

Hmmmm..so I guess I need to check back in two weeks. It didn't say anything about that when I deactivated it, just that it was deactivated. You know the sad thing about this is, I just joined facebook two weeks ago because I needed to find a family member..

RacePhoto

« Reply #29 on: May 27, 2010, 12:08 »
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Go and deactivate....DELETE???...your account then sign back in and it will automatically reactivate just by you signing in. You can not delete it unless there is a button besides deactivate that I could not find. Try it and you will discover that it will reactivate it just by signing in, you don't have to go to your account setting to do it..it does it for you.

https://ssl.facebook.com/help/contact.php?show_form=delete_account&__a=3

Good one which should remove data as well, but we'll never know that.

Thanks for the easy link.

« Reply #30 on: May 27, 2010, 12:08 »
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So this begs the question why waste even a minute there. It's just about all mindless.

You just need better friends. Just kidding. ;D

Personally, I appreciate knowing what is going on in my friends', family's, old roomates' and former coworkers' lives. Yeah, I could probably pick up the phone instead and have a much more meaningful conversation, but there is something to be said for having them all hanging out in one place 24/7 to entertain me. The privacy stuff is definitely a concern, but that pretty much goes for everything on the web.

« Reply #31 on: May 27, 2010, 12:34 »
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Personally, I appreciate knowing what is going on in my friends', family's, old roomates' and former coworkers' lives. Yeah, I could probably pick up the phone instead and have a much more meaningful conversation, but there is something to be said for having them all hanging out in one place 24/7 to entertain me. The privacy stuff is definitely a concern, but that pretty much goes for everything on the web.

I feel the same way. It is so convenient having to post one story on my page, and having my (big) family and friends be able to read it all at the same time, instead of telling the story a bunch of times. I would miss that part.

I hate how they are stealing data, but really, in today's world, when you sit down in front of the computer and log on, don't you pretty much know somebody is going to be watching you? I am in NO WAY condoning what facebook has done, they have gone WAY too far and there should be some sort of crackdown.

Someone in a previous post asked about gmail...I think it works basically the same way. I got a Droid Eris (Google) phone a few months ago, and it's incredible how much it knows about me and how much I didn't have to input. A little scary, but again, I haven't noticed any increase in spam, and haven't had anything drastically scare the bejesus out of me, so I think I'll just be as diligent as I can about privacy and forge on into the future. I might reget it and you all have my permission to say I told you so!

« Reply #32 on: May 27, 2010, 14:52 »
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If someone else signs up, they'll do the same, saving the addresses of non-FB members. They don't use those for direct spam, but to construct networks that go beyond the FB members. That's why they are so amazing (they are!) in suggesting who you might know. Freaky...

So probably some of my friends and aquaintances who signed up in FB let FB scan their Yahoo address list, and FB grabbed my non-FB email address and saved it in their database.  Some did not invite me because I was already in their network with the other email address, some invited me through my main email address, and then I invited them through FB and not added them through their invitation.  And the other people I don't know are probably friends of these friends who had their address books scanned, and FB suggested that we may also be friends.  Freaky indeed, and it is amazing that people would let FB scan their Yahoo Mail anyway.

« Reply #33 on: May 27, 2010, 15:00 »
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Personally, I appreciate knowing what is going on in my friends', family's, old roomates' and former coworkers' lives. Yeah, I could probably pick up the phone instead and have a much more meaningful conversation, but there is something to be said for having them all hanging out in one place 24/7 to entertain me. The privacy stuff is definitely a concern, but that pretty much goes for everything on the web.

I feel the same way. It is so convenient having to post one story on my page, and having my (big) family and friends be able to read it all at the same time, instead of telling the story a bunch of times. I would miss that part.

I joined FB because so many of my SP colleagues - some even leaving SP - were there and we could keep each other posted about new photos, etc.  Then I found several college mates, and Internet friends.  It's nice to send them a new video, something to read, whatever, and read about something new in their lives (although I don't share anything really personal there).  But it's a bit silly that some people only say "It's raining here today" - and even sillier that people write back. :D 

I play Bejeweled a lot and tried Treasure Island the other day - very cute, but I found it so boring!  I did not even try Farmville and such because I suppose they are all about the same.  But their cute graphics I see from my friends's posts are eye-catching. 

Another anoying thing is being informed what a friend wrote on his friend's wall, when I have nothing to do with that friend of a friend.  Is there anyway I can avoid this?

lisafx

« Reply #34 on: May 27, 2010, 18:02 »
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I'm not on FB - I spend WAY too much time online as it is.  Don't need another time-waster.

But my husband was shocked to see how much info he was given about distant relatives he barely knows that friended him.  Why do they think he wants to know how much time his distant cousin is spending playing Farmville, and what her score was?  Snore...  He deleted his account. 

A good friend of mine has been forbidden to babysit her grandson because her daughter in-law was able to view how much time she was spending playing some game on facebook while the baby was napping.  Now they aren't even speaking.  Really, that is way too intrusive IMO. 

If I have no life that's nobody's business but mine ;)

« Reply #35 on: May 28, 2010, 04:00 »
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Guys, I posted yesterday on my wall on FB that I'm going to delete my account because there is no privacy, and then my friend told me FR introduced privacy again. It happened yesterday I think, and now again, you can hide almost everything. You can also be the only person who can see your friends list, and other people can see only friends from your friends list that are in common with him/her.
I went to my account and hide everything I thought is important to hide.

« Reply #36 on: May 28, 2010, 23:54 »
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Guys, I posted yesterday on my wall on FB that I'm going to delete my account because there is no privacy, and then my friend told me FR introduced privacy again. It happened yesterday I think, and now again, you can hide almost everything. You can also be the only person who can see your friends list, and other people can see only friends from your friends list that are in common with him/her.
I went to my account and hide everything I thought is important to hide.
As far as I read on tech blogs, they just simplified the user interface to the privacy, so you don't have to wade through pages of settings any more (often overlooked). The policy staid the same. They don't honor "Delete account" properly, and only Zuck knows what data they keep after you went. It's clear what Zuck thinks about his users: "Dumb f@cks".
There are fine social networks, with proper privacy, like MySpace and Friendster. I don't understand what this brat made take over the world. Pure arrogance will be amongst the reasons.
« Last Edit: May 28, 2010, 23:57 by FD-amateur »

« Reply #37 on: May 29, 2010, 00:06 »
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I'm not on FB - I spend WAY too much time online as it is.  Don't need another time-waster.
I have a few connections that are into network management for large corporations and governmental organizations. It's scary how much production time is lost on FB there. Where it's blocked, serial emails go around to point to proxy sites.

« Reply #38 on: May 29, 2010, 01:58 »
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LOL yeah we have those apps blocked on all our FB accounts. They annoy the crap out of me. I have one personal FB account that I could live without but I'd die without the business ones.

Question about the personal/business accounts. I first had a personal account. Then I wanted to created a Page for my cathyslife (business) stuff. The cathyslife page is tied to my personal account and personal friends. I never wanted it to be but couldn't find a way to separate the two. Meaning I don't necessarily want my family to be fans of my business site. Short of creating (and I think you have to pay for) an ad to bring in more fans, is there a way to have a separate business account?

I'm not sure if there is another way but here's the way we use FB .. create a personal profile that is more or less for business use then create the page attached to that profile. We direct people to both from our website. We encourage potential clients we are targeting to become a friend so that we can build on the personal relationship with the client through direct contact which creates bigger sales / loyal return clients. Then we get them to fan the page to maintain professionalism. Using the two profiles in conjunction creates the perfect FB marketing program ... For family and friends you don't want trying to chat you up when you are networking you can either group them as family & friends then turn off the chat for that group while working or you can do what a lot of people do and just create another account for personal use.
FB ads are a waste of time I think. We invested into a 3 month trial run on them last year and they honestly didn't produce. They didn't cost hardly anything but they didn't return a profit either. Might depend on your target audience though. Some fields may produce better results.

RacePhoto

« Reply #39 on: June 02, 2010, 10:05 »
0
Just found this interesting site that you copy a bookmark, go to Facebook and it checks all areas for privacy settings so you can see if you missed something.

http://www.reclaimprivacy.org/


 

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