Is it possible that Facebook is tracking your web browsing activity, even when you are logged out? Is privacy a lost cause because of social networking. According to writer Nik Cubrilovic, Facebook may know that you are reading a website based on the Facebook share button on that site. Facebook only appear to be altering the state of the cookies instead of removing all of them when a user logs out of Facebook. This means that if you then surf to a page online that has a Facebook share button, or any other Facebook related widget, all relevant information (including your User ID) is then sent to Facebook. This information provides Facebook with real information on where you are going on the internet.
ZDNET has obtained a response from Facebook in relation to this and they explicitly state that Facebook does not track users’ web activity. They also explain the purpose of logged out cookies – Facebook does not track users across the web. Instead, we use cookies on social plugins to personalize content (e.g. Show you what your friends liked), to help maintain and improve what we do (e.g. Measure click-through rate), or for safety and security (e.g. Keeping underage kids from trying to signup with a different age). No information we receive when you see a social plugins is used to target ads, we delete or anonymize this information within 90 days, and we never sell your information.
So what are your thoughts – are your worried about your privacy on Facebook?
