Facebook is collecting data from everyone, even when not logged in

Facebook gathers data points from people who don't use Facebook, and that's the biggest gap in Facebook's data security.

Facebook always insists that it has complied with all terms for Facebook users. What about people who don't use Facebook?

When summoned before Congress this week, Facebook's approach to user data was presented publicly and transparently. After answering many questions repeatedly, he focused on security options for users, and on ownership with the data they shared. What he said was not entirely wrong. Facebook has data that is shared by users (mostly). Users can control data and reference them or delete them whenever they want (with a few exceptions). And if you delete your Facebook account, almost all data will disappear from Facebook's server within 90 days. This information is correct, but like annotations in parentheses can show you that they are imperfect and lacking. On the second day of the hearing, congressional members began to recognize many of these loopholes.

Facebook has data that is shared by users (mostly).

The most powerful example comes from Congressman Ben Lujan, who questioned Zuckerberg about using the company's "invisible profile" - the term refers to the data-gathering behavior of people who don't use Facebook, but Zuckerberg did not seem to know.

Lujan asked: "Information has been acknowledged that you have collected data from non-Facebook users. My question is, can people who do not have a Facebook account choose to not participate in the collection behavior? Non-voluntary data of Facebook or not? ".

Zuckerberg replied: "Anyone can opt out of collecting data for ads, whether they use our services or not. But to prevent people from drowning information, they I need to know when that person is continuously accessing our service ".

Lujan continued: "You say everyone controls their data, but you are collecting data from people who are not Facebook users, who have not signed a private agreement, And now he's collecting their information, and he's directing people who don't have a Facebook account to register to join Facebook so they can get their data. "

In return, Lujan caught a serious flaw in Facebook, a flaw that could bring legal consequences for months to come. The truth is, even if you have never signed up for Facebook, the company still knows how you are. Data is updated from linked lists, photos, and many other sources.

Mark Zuckerberg in the hearing.

The data collection of non-Facebook users has opened up a lot of questions about what data is and is not protected by Zuckerberg's vision. Zuckerberg repeatedly reminded that Facebook could delete all your data, when you delete your account. But what about the invisible accounts, formed from before you set up your Facebook account? Zuckerberg also talked about your ability to download Facebook data, but people who don't use Facebook won't be able to access this data store, and the download tool will also hide the data that Facebook has collected and used. from people who don't use Facebook, even if it's data from Facebook's Pixel analysis tool, or location data pulled from the phone.

The most specific example of invisible files comes from the service You may know of Facebook. Even if you have never signed up for Facebook, you will appear in the partner list of Facebook users. When users connect their email accounts or messaging data to Facebook, the data of countless people who do not use Facebook will also be scanned. Instead of deleting this information, Facebook retains the attached data to something Hill temporarily calls "invisible account". It's a trustworthy data bank that's stored, and if you sign up for Facebook, the company will know exactly who they will recommend to connect you to you.

Instead of deleting this information, Facebook retains the attached data to something Hill temporarily calls "invisible account".

The invisible profile will become an alternative to data that is not shared in a person's official account. Facebook said that when you delete your account, all your data will be deleted from their server within 90 days. But it's hard to believe that this law applies to both the data of the invisible account, the data exists without an official account. Today, Zuckerberg reassured Congress that Facebook's data download tool includes all of the user's information, but he doesn't mention the web tracking tools that Facebook does via the Like button, and only make general interest categories created from this data. How can we be sure that no similar data is being collected from non-Facebook users, or is this data still relevant to them after they delete their Facebook account?

Senator Kurt Schrader tried to get an answer from Zuckerberg about the behavior of watching people outside this social networking platform, but the answer was quite vague.

Schrader asked: "As I understand from today's testimony, even if I logged out of Facebook, are you still able to track my interactions on the web?".

Zuckerberg replied: "You have control over what we do with ads and data collections based on that. About security, there are specific things about how you use Facebook, even when I don't log into the platform, let us follow up to make sure you're not abusing the system. "

You cannot change your ads preferences or download your data if you are not a Facebook user.

Questions in this area are extremely unpredictable for Facebook, as as Lujan pointed out, Facebook's control depends on whether a person has a Facebook account. You cannot change your advertising preferences or download your data if you are not a Facebook user, even if we all know that the company is storing a lot of information related to us.

For the time being, Facebook's data protection tools are only serving the purpose of reassuring users after many aggressive data collection going on behind the scenes. This was emphasized in a heated conversation with Senator Debbie Dingwell at the end of the hearing.

Dingwell said: "As a CEO, I don't even know the important information. I don't know what an invisible account is. I don't know how many applications I need to inspect. I don't know in the past. , how many other companies were sold data by Cambridge Analytica . You don't even know the different types of information that Facebook is collecting from users. "

Dingwell continued: "This is what I really know. I have a tool to follow through the internet. On almost every website, we see the like and share button of Facebook, and with Facebook Pixel, people even "It doesn't matter if you have a Facebook account. It doesn't matter if you have a Facebook account. Through these tools, Facebook can collect data from all of us."