Following Facebook’s announcement of their “Home” app, many people seem to have read Om Malik’s melodramatic cry over spilt milk:
Om says, “But there is a bigger worry. The phone’s GPS can send constant information back to the Facebook servers, telling it your whereabouts at any time.”
Yes, it can Om, you’re right. And how does it do that, exactly? I’ll tell you shall I… Here’s a step-by-step;
- You download the app
- You agree to the app using your GPS
- You open the app
- You allow the app to take over the home screen
OH MY GOD! I’ve suddenly realised how awful Facebook is – taking all that information from you without your consent(!)
Justifying his lying on the floor kicking and screaming, Om continues, “Facebook, a company that is known to have played loose-and-easy with consumer privacy and data since its very inception..”
Again, he’s spot on. But rather than make his point this shows how pathetic his argument is. If anything, that should have prepared him for the inevitability that Facebook will use his data. He appears to be saying,
“I can’t believe Facebook is using the huge amount of data about my life that I handed over!”
My response to Om, and anyone else whinging about their privacy within the Facebook wall, is;
If you willingly hand over any data about your life to any company whose terms, which you agreed to, state they can use that data then they will bloody well use it. If you don’t like it, don’t fucking hand over your data, you moron!
My next rant will be about why I LOVE handing over my data! 😉
Update: Instead of of that second rant, just read this which I agree with completely. In fact, I’m already allowing Google to track my every move and loving the benefits I’m getting.
Leave a Reply