Facebook’s new privacy settings introduce PAI to the Internet

by Steve Ragan - Dec 14 2009, 14:30

If you have followed the news in the last week, there has been a good deal written about the changes to Facebook’s privacy settings. At the same time, when you look at them from a high level, some new settings are a disaster, but overall nothing else changed really.

First, it should be noted that Facebook has pushed privacy to the front of the line and sparked both discussion and debate over it. This is great. This is exactly what has to happen if there is to be any movement forward in addressing privacy issues online. No matter what you may think of the new settings, you have to give Facebook credit, they have your attention when it comes to privacy, it’s just that they are catching more negative than positive as of late.

After the privacy changes were released, one of the first complaints centered on the lost ability to manage the friends list and keep it from public viewing. Granted, Facebook gave this ability back after some torch and pitchfork action from the public, but this was only the start to the issues.

We wanted to ask a few typical Facebook users their thoughts on the new changes. “It's not much different for me... though I like the new format. It's easier to navigate," commented Brent Smith, “overall, I think more people will be aware of what they can make public/private, and it will be easier to do so, especially for the less technically-inclined folks."

Brent has a point with the privacy section being easier to navigate, it is in some aspects. However, when you take a closer look, some of the issues from before are still there, such as granular control without a clear explanation of what the various settings mean.

“[They] didn't change anything. Though in theory, I like the option of being able to hide posts from certain people," said Nikki Sayer Manier, when asked her opinions on the privacy changes. She noted that overall, the changes barely impacted her.

When asked to explain why she wanted to hide posts, she added, "I have friends, as well as family and co-workers on here. There are different sides of yourself you show to different people, and now your posts can reflect that as opposed to general ones you want everyone to see."

Her thoughts are mirrored by Robert Branch, who told us, “Honestly I don't see much of a difference, and I do agree I like the hide posts [option]... makes face book more personal.”

As mentioned, some of the new options are easy to control. At the same time, some of them are buried. Once again, take the friends list as an example. You need to edit the friends list box itself on your profile page to manage those privacy options. If you were looking for these controls in the privacy menu, where they would be expected, then some of you were hunting for a while.

Another frustrating aspect to the new privacy settings centers on what Facebook calls PAI, or Publically Available Information. This information, includes your name, profile image, current city, networks, gender, friends list, and pages you are listed on as a fan, and makes it available to application developers if you or your friends use their products.

The only PAI protection comes from the ability to limit the amount of information friends share about you in the Applications and Websites section of the privacy manager. Even then, Facebook reminds you that, “Please note that applications will always be able to access your publicly available information...”

This leads to another issue, for those who did not watch what was being migrated when the new privacy settings took hold, several parts of your profile might have switched to the recommended Everyone setting. This means that everyone will see that information, even if they are not listed as a friend, friend of a friend, or if they are outside of any network you’re a part of.

However, Facebook has noted that you can control what information you enter on the site, and you can limit said information using the privacy settings. This has always been the case. However, the real question is how many of the 350 million plus users are taking full advantage of the privacy controls?

As we’ve seen, some users had previously private information turned over to the public thanks to these new settings.

While researching some of the chages on Facebook, we also came across examples of users whose accounts were previously blocked and, after the new settings took effect, now offer up most, if not all, available information. Things like location (hometown), siblings, relationship status, personal information (about me), education, pages, groups, wall posts, and photos have all become visible on these previously guarded accounts. This leads us to wonder, was the new disclosure intentional, or simply the case of clicking next until the migration window disappeared? 

Again, it is great Facebook has made privacy such a public topic. However, it will take a long time before anyone is completely happy with the privacy settings they have made available on their site. Even then, no one will totally agree, no matter what direction they move in.

For now, check your profiles, and use the preview option Facebook offers and go over each of the privacy features. Make sure you are sharing only the information you feel comfortable with, and filter out the rest. However, with PAI, the only real option it seems is to just accept it or leave the site. There doesn’t appear to be any changes in this option any time soon.

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