Vanity Fair's Maya Kosodd points out the consequences of tapping or clicking through the little popups when you sign up for Facebook: these are contracts that let Facebook do everything that you're now complaining about.
In its current iteration, Facebook’s Messenger application requests that those who download it give it permission to access incoming and outgoing call and text logs. But, as users discovered when prompted to download a copy of their personal data before permanently deleting their Facebook accounts, a certain amount of data was covertly siphoned without explicit permissions.
But, as Facebook responds:
You may have seen some recent reports that Facebook has been logging people’s call and SMS (text) history without their permission.
This is not the case.
...
People have to expressly agree to use this feature. If, at any time, they no longer wish to use this feature they can turn it off
In other words, he's calling you a dumb fuck again.
Here's the screen where they trick people into giving them their call history. The contrast ratio of the silvertext is, according to WebAIM, 2:32 to 1, which fails the applicable accessibility standards for readable text.
Here you're agreeing to "text anyone in your phone," as far as you're concerned, which of course you want to be able to do--and can already do without letting Facebook track your calls and messages. Not only is this fact in small print silvertext, it's parked in an eyes-glaze-over paragraph about "continuous uploads" that uses superficially simple and approachable language to conceal what it's really about: letting Facebook track your calls and messages.
The Washington Post rounds up 15 privacy defaults that no one in their right mind would want to leave as-is, and provides direct links to change 'em (hilariously and predictably, Verizon/Oath/Yahoo's privacy settings dashboard times out when you try to load it) -- once you're done with that, go back and follow his links to […]
Facebook opened up access to friends' data through its API in a bid to attract developers to its platform, but in 2015, it incurred those developers' wrath when it pulled the rug out from under them, killing the API calls that allowed apps to mine their users' friends' data.
A former executive from the data-mining dark operator Cambridge Analytica ‘visited Julian Assange in February last year and told friends it was to discuss what happened during the US election,’ the Guardian reported today. Brittany Kaiser worked as a director there until not long ago, and is reported “to have channelled cryptocurrency payments and donations […]
The human eye is a powerful thing, but it’s not so great at seeing in the dark or around tight spaces, which is partially why most of us struggle with unplugging drains, cleaning under the fridge, and other hard-to-reach jobs. This 1080p HD Waterproof WiFi Wireless Endoscopic Camera, however, gives you the flexibility necessary to get […]
Macs are undeniably some of the most versatile computers on the market, but they can do so much more than what their stock apps allow. For those looking to get the most out of their Mac hardware, the Pay What You Want 2018 Super Mac Bundle features 10 of the industry’s top apps, including photo editors and […]
Salesforce has reinvented the way companies manage customer information, close deals, and ultimately drive revenue, so it should come as no surprise that it’s one of the more valuable skills you can list on your resume today. In fact, according to research from Burning Glass, this platform is now the 7th most in-demand software skill, beating out […]
