I’ve always been pretty open about the fact that I am not a fan of Facebook. I find the site to be difficult to use, shocking I know since grandmas seem to command it with ease. However I did eventually create a bare bones account simply because I write about events each week and most of the events around Los Angeles are posted on Facebook. I don’t have anything on my wall nor do I have any friends. I actually never even log into my account. I only utilize it when I need to look at an invite, so I was surprised to see that recently many people are upset and deleting their Facebook accounts due to privacy concerns.
Each day I see more and more tweets from people who are simply fed up and dropping the service, but one LA tech maven is not going quietly. Alana Joy, host on This Week In Twitter, has started a campaign to shed some awareness to the privacy issues, it’s called Facebook Protest.
Facebook Protest is asking those who disagree with the changes Facebook has made to it’s privacy policies to commit to not logging in or interacting with Facebook in any way for one whole day. The protest is taking place on June 6th, 2010 and it’s been dubbed D-Day. To participate simply log out of Facebook in all of your browsers on the evening of June 5th, then on the 6th, be sure to not utilize Facebook connect or click any “like” buttons.
I was able to catch up with Alana for a quick interview on why she started the campaign, what Facebook can do to make amends, and what the future of social networking holds.
Interview with Alana Joy
1. Why did you decide to start the Facebook Protest Twitter account and website?
Sometimes I take for granted that the rest of the world doesn’t spend the same amount of time using social media as I do. I don’t think most people really understand just what exactly is going on or why it matters so much. We assume we have certain rights and ownership over our personal information. We assume that our personal information will not be shared with any other website or brand else unless we’ve expressly permitted it. Facebook has lured users into a seemingly safe place: to connect with people they know and reunite people they have lost track of, a place to network with like-minded individuals. A beautiful, however long forgotten ideal. As Facebook has grown is has taken a greedy, irresponsible approach and it’s ever-changing TOS has reflected that.
I personally felt a bit helpless after reading post after post about the outwardly unethical changes that have been made and security breaches that have been reported: and I don’t do helpless. There is always something that can be done. With consumer groups and politicians doing what they could to contest these changes, I felt it was my responsibility to bring what I could do to the table as well. I could use social media to raise awareness and assert a call to action. I wanted to empower not only myself but the other individuals out there who shared my feelings of frustration and gather them together to make one loud statement to Facebook: your users are not happy. Our information is not for sale to your real customer: the advertisers. The advertisers who pay Facebook to show their ads to specific demographics. The more information Facebook can gather about you, the more targeted advertising they can offer to brands, the more money they will make because they are offering specific leads and tailored opportunities.
There have been reports of Facebook selling users images to advertisers as well. A happily married mans photo was used in an advertisement on Facebook for a singles service. Without his permission. Think of the havoc that may have wreaked on someones personal or professional life. To those who have said “if you don’t want it out there, don’t share it on Facebook”: does this mean we should never upload a photo? And if we upload the photo and have our privacy settings to where only friends can see it, but they sell it to an advertiser: what do you say to that? What if after we have uploaded the photo, Facebook yet again changes its TOS without any notice or instructions on how to opt out sent to all users?
2. You are asking people to not log into their Facebook account on D-Day, June 6th, do you think enough people will listen and do you think Facebook will notice?
I’m hoping that through the ripple effect of social media sharing, enough people will discover the protest and decide to take part and encourage their own network to do the same. This is a grass-roots effort, with currently no sponsorship, no team of activists: it’s just me, sharing the information I discover and getting it onto as many screens as possible. Ideally, if enough people did participate, it could hit Facebook in the one place they do care about: their bank account. Facebook is estimated to make over $1 Billion this year. Millions of dollars a day. If this protest is substantial enough, they can’t afford to not care.
3. Are you currently still logging into Facebook each day? If yes, why?
I created a Facebook group for this cause because it is the Facebook user I am reaching out to, however I will be removing myself from Facebook when this is over. Anyone I connect with on Facebook, I connect with in other places as well. There is no real need for Facebook. There are plenty of other places to share my blog posts, the cool things I find online, my photos, etc.
4. What changes can Facebook make that will change your mind about their privacy settings, and make you a regular user again?
After this protest I will not be returning to Facebook. However, Facebook should consider setting all users to be in an opt-out setting by default so that opting in is a choice. What it means to opt-in should be clearly and thoroughly explained, and what information that will be shared and with who should be detailed. I have lost 100% of trust in Facebook as a brand and I encourage others to think twice before trusting Facebook to keep your information secure or to be consistent in their policies
5. If Facebook is not going to listen and change their ways, where do you recommend people should go who want to enjoy the benefits of social networking without privacy concerns? Does such a place exist or are we waiting for someone to make it?
I’m not exactly sure the answer to that question. How about I pose another question: why do we need a single destination as our home base? First we thought Friendster was the end all be all, then along came Myspace. Everyone then thought Myspace was “the one” and Facebook came long. I think we need something new, something open… and yet something that provides individuals with ultimate control over what they publicly share.
There is something I want to make clear: when you hear the term “open web”, please don’t misunderstand what that means. An open web doesn’t mean loss of privacy of your personal information like some people have stated (*cough cough* Scoble *cough cough*). The open web has to do with open source API codes, data portability, etc. It is not only possible but preferable that we maintain control of what personal data gets shared along any lines. To blur the definition of what it means to have an open web is counterproductive and mixing two issues that have nothing to do with each other.
Follow @FacebookProtest on Twitter to join the campaign and check out their website FacebookProtest.com.
