At first glance, Mark Zuckerberg's new 'privacy-focused vision ' for Facebook looks like a transformative mission statement from a CEO under pressure to reverse years of battering over its surveillance practices and privacy failures.
At first glance, Mark Zuckerberg's new "privacy-focused vision " for Facebook looks like a transformative mission statement from a CEO under pressure to reverse years of battering over its surveillance practices and privacy failures.
Zuckerberg's plan, outlined Wednesday, expands Facebook's commitment to private messaging, in sharp contrast with his traditional focus on public sharing. Facebook would combine its instant-messaging services WhatsApp and Instagram Direct with its core Messenger app so that users of one could message people on the others, and would expand the use of encrypted messaging to keep outsiders -- including Facebook -- from reading the messages.
In some respects, Facebook was already headed in this direction. It has dabbled with shopping features in its Messenger app for a few years, although without much effect. And WhatsApp, which Facebook acquired for $22 billion in 2014, embraced a strong privacy technology known as "end-to-end encryption" nearly three years ago. Messages protected this way are shielded from snooping, even by the services who deliver them.
"Until Facebook actually fixes its core privacy issues -- and especially given their history -- it's difficult to take the pivot to privacy seriously," said Justin Brookman, who was a research director at the Federal Trade Commission before joining Consumers Union as privacy and technology chief in 2017.
And Facebook doesn't just use people's information and activity on its platform, dissecting it to target people with tailored ads. It also tracks people who don't even use the platform via small pieces of software embedded in third-party apps.
Philippines Latest News, Philippines Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Facebook’s ‘privacy’ push really all about profit, critics saySome say CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s recommitment to private messaging obscures the social-media giant’s deeper motivations
Read more »
Mark Zuckerberg announces sweeping changes to Facebook in new focus on privacy, encryptionZuckerberg said Facebook will shift to a platform where people communicate with smaller groups and their content disappears after a short period of time
Read more »
Facebook Pressured Canadian Officials To Skirt Privacy Rules: U.K. Media Reports'I believe these allegations are true because it fits very much the pattern of how Facebook has been operating,' NDP MP Charlie Angus said.
Read more »
Mark Zuckerberg lays new ‘privacy-focused’ vision for FacebookZuckerberg laid out his vision in a Wednesday blog post, following a rocky two-year period in which the company has weathered a series of revelations about its leaky privacy controls
Read more »
Zuckerberg promises a privacy-friendly Facebook, sort ofFacebook, which grew into a colossus by vacuuming up your information in every possible way and using it to target ads back at you, now says its future lies in privacy-oriented messaging that Facebook itself can't read.
Read more »
Mario Batali ‘will no longer profit’ from his restaurantsFollowing sexual misconduct allegations, the chef has divested from all of his restaurants
Read more »
Spin Master profit drops, hampered by closure of Toys 'R' Us in U.S.The Toronto-based toy and entertainment company says net income for the fourth quarter was US$11.4 million or 11 diluted cents per share
Read more »
From town square to living room: Zuckerberg announces sweeping changes to Facebook in new focus on privacyFacebook will shift to a platform where people communicate with smaller groups and their content disappears after a short period of time
Read more »