Facebook Search Graph Is Here: Fix Your Privacy Settings (Again!)

Posted Thursday, January 24, 2013 in Social Media by Patricia Seybold

Facebook Graph Search joins Timeline and Newsfeed as a third “capability” in Facebook that most of us didn’t want and haven’t welcomed. The clue is in the name itself. No real person wants to search the “social graph.” Only robots spawned by marketers do. Facebook Graph Search lets applications and algorithms (and individuals) look for and aggregate likes, check-ins, photos, and profiles.

What’s in it for us? As an end-user (not an application), you can search for other people who like Gilbert & Sullivan who live in the Boston area—that’s useful if you’re putting on a performance. But marketers and their algorithms are likely to be much more invasive. And what about those things you “liked” that you may not want showing up on a search. For example, I work for Apple, but I liked Samsung phones at some point in the past?

Anthony Kosner’s thoughtful article in Forbes, “Facebook Graph Search Is A Disruptive Minefield Of Unintended Consequences” provides some thoughtful analysis about what Facebook Graph Search means for marketers and competitors.

Electronic Frontier Foundation provides the best guidance for how to fix your privacy settings, including “unliking” things you’ve liked in the past and untagging yourself from photos.

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