Facebook users complain about new tracking

Posted on November 22, 2007
Filed Under Facebook, Marketing, News, Technology |

CTV.ca | Facebook users complain about new tracking

NEW YORK — Some users of the online hangout Facebook are complaining that its two-week-old marketing program is publicizing their purchases for friends to see.Those users say they never noticed a small box that appears on a corner of their Web browsers following transactions at Fandango, Overstock and other online retailers. The box alerts users that information is about to be shared with Facebook unless they click on “No Thanks.” It disappears after about 20 seconds, after which consent is assumed.Users are given a second notice the next time they log on to Facebook, but they can easily miss it if they quickly click away to visit a friend’s page or check email.

“People should be given much more of a notice, much more of an alert,” said Matthew Helfgott, 20, a college student who discovered his girlfriend just bought him black leather gloves from Overstock for Hanukkah. “She said she had no idea (information would be shared). She said it invaded her privacy.”

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Comments

One Response to “Facebook users complain about new tracking”

Rick on November 22nd, 2007 7:23 pm

Invading privacy not really! by using sites like Facebook and the likes, a user clearly voids his rights to online privacy… (A friend could of seen the purchased gloves and told his buddy I saw so and so ex buy him gloves!).

I do agree that it should be more OBVIOUS to users that their purchases are announced to their Facebook friends and that they have an option to hide or show the purchase. In today’s Web 2.0 more and more sites are networking their API’s together so users on one site can access and communicate with their account on various other social networking sites.