Facebook 'accidentally outing gay users'

[Paws]

Farcebook.
Fecesbook.
Facepuke.

 

[Esquire0399]

Actually Facebook also displays ads targeted to towards gay people if they visit a lot of gay sites on their computers, even if the user does not describe himself as gay. Fucked me over at one point.

 

[levenshulme31]

^^ better start looking at Nascar and Christian Rock sites to keep it in balance.

 

[Sam Blum]

Facebook sucks. I opened my facebook account one day to find that I had supposedly completed a questionnaire and the results of that questionnaire were pasted onto my page for all to see, stating that I was as completely pissed off with my job as is humanly possible! I then went through the process of shutting down my facebook account, as it was impossible to remove this bullshit. That was around a month ago. They say taht if you don't visit facebook for 2 weeks after you initiate the closedown, your page is finished.

Tonight I opened my emails to find one there from facebook regarding my account with them and so on and so forth. When I clicked on the "unsubscribe" link, I was taken to the Facebook sign-in page. So, apparently my account is still open. What a bunch of losers.

 

[USEDCAR]

Here's the link if you want to delete your facebook account for good

http://www.facebook.com/help/contact.php?show_form=delete_account

 

[LilBit]

I get almost as many Christian-themed ads as I do gay-themed ads, and my profile specifically lists my religion as Jewish.

 

[boxerdudeuk]

Actually Facebook also displays ads targeted to towards gay people if they visit a lot of gay sites on their computers, even if the user does not describe himself as gay. Fucked me over at one point.

I don't think this is true actually. Facebook's servers can't read cookies on your system deposited by other sites and analyze them for advertiser data. It's hugely against their TOS and privacy *snicker* policies. If I'm wrong I'll eat my words but I think this is incorrect

 

[Alistair]

Facebook also thinks every gay man simply "must" know each other. I keep getting friend recommendations based only on the fact that the person is gay. I didn't go to school with them, they aren't from my area and we don't have mutual friends. WTF's with that? lol I don't have my preference posted on my profile, they do it just because some of my friends are gay?

 

[Esquire0399]

I don't think this is true actually. Facebook's servers can't read cookies on your system deposited by other sites and analyze them for advertiser data. It's hugely against their TOS and privacy *snicker* policies. If I'm wrong I'll eat my words but I think this is incorrect

All of the ads I see on a daily basis disagree with you. Not saying you're wrong, just sharing my experience and how it put me in a bad situation not so long ago.

 

[nbluth]

^Yeah but this is the key right here:

This means that the advertising firms now know if they are gay even if this aspect of their profile has been hidden from public view.

So basically if you are out to your friends only, you still are going to get ads directed towards gay men. And once you click that ad, they have some of your information...at the very least your sexual orientation and your name.

Every day I'm closer to deleting my facebook. I haven't really used it since college, so there isn't much point in keeping it right? I've said it before and I'll say it again: facebook should have kept it to only allow users to sign up with their .edu email address. All these problems started when they opened to the entire world to use.

 

[Spiff]

How did we ever live without Facebook?

The same way I am living now, without Facebook.

 

[Esquire0399]

I don't have my orientation filled out on my facebook and I surf gay sites daily and I've not seen a gay ad yet. Only the things I've filled out in my profile.

Again, just speaking from my experience. That'd be a dumbass thing to make up.

 

[Paws]

Facebook's servers can't read cookies on your system deposited by other sites and analyze them for advertiser data.

Maybe it's the same method of checking the visited links like on didyouwatchporn.com.

 

[Alistair]

In one case, these IDs were then embedded in a "cookie," which tracks users as they navigate the Web, by an online data collection company, the Journal said. That meant that Facebook users' names and browsing habits could be linked up.

from: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101018/ap_on_hi_te/us_facebook_apps_breached

 

[geloge]

accidentally?