Facebook privacy settings backlashed

The basic aim of the changes was to give users the ability to review and customize their level of privacy, thus making it easier for them to control who can access the information they post.

But these changes have failed to live up to reasonable expectations of the users.

The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPFC) and other digital rights group have heaped a lot of criticism saying that the new changes are intended to push Facebook users to reveal more information than before, thus reducing the control users have on their personal data.

Expressing their annoyance, EPFC and organizations like American Library Association, the Consumer Federation of America, and the Center for Digital Democracy have filed a complaint with Federal Trade Commission, urging it to look into the changes and restore the old privacy options.

End users voice discontentment
A lot of negative comments have also poured in from the blogosphere, where the Facebook users have condemned the latest changes and asked for old privacy settings.

The changes were aimed at "Improving Sharing Through Control, Simplicity and Connection” but end users have surely not appreciated the move.

The users’ biggest concern is that the information which was previously treated personal, like user’s name, profile picture, current city, gender, and pages a user is a fan of, will be treated as publically available information.

A user named sanne commented on Inside Facebook, “I’m not impressed and really think of closing down my account. there is no way to protect my privacy! i can’t controll my profile board and i can’t really controll what can be found in the internet.”

Another user named Ashley stated on Facebook blog, “i hate the new settings and i want the old ones back. i liked it when people could not view my friends in search and when i could block specific people from viewing that information. i would like to have old privacy settings back.”

“Why Is The Friend List Always Shown To All Fiends?? Who Came Up With That PRIVATE Decision?? Where The Hell Is The Users Voice Where Is Our Privacy?,” commented a user named Amor Le Pasha on the same blog.

Criticism hurled in the past
This is not the first time that the social networking site has been condemned for its privacy settings. Facebook has been challenged before for the changes it has introduced over the years, specifically confusing privacy settings.

The Canadian Privacy Commissioner had issued a report in July questioning its default privacy setting which shared personal information that is sensitive and “requires express consent”.

Recently a Norwegian consumer protection agency, Forbrukerrådet, has criticized Facebook saying that it conducts operations “in a legal vacuum and irrespective of norms and standards".