26 May 2010 | Author: D. Warburton Search Copywriter

Facebook makes privacy settings 'simpler'

Facebook has announced it will revamp its privacy settings for all users later today, to make managing profiles simpler and more secure. The company will also hold briefings with the US Congress tomorrow to respond to recent criticisms of its privacy policy.

The world's leading social network site, which currently has more than 400 million active users, has faced much criticism over its privacy regulations, particularly after a recent blunder made it possible for users to view their friends' private chats and pending friend requests.

The website has also been criticised for making periodic revisions to its privacy policy that aimed to give users greater control over their personal settings, but were largely viewed as unnecessarily confusing. According to BBC News, the current privacy policy's length of 5,830 words makes it longer than the US Constitution.

Ahead of a conference at the company's Palo Alto headquarters 6.30pm this evening (BST) that will explain the 'simpler' privacy settings, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg admitted that the social network has "missed the mark" in terms of user privacy.

A spokesperson said yesterday: "Our new, simpler privacy settings are starting to roll out tomorrow evening so stay tuned on our blog for more details."

Although the company has apologised for its slip-ups, there are a number of users who feel the continuing changes to the privacy policy are not enough, and the BBC reports that many Facebook profile owners are threatening to close their accounts on 31 May in protest.

Privacy settings are not the only security concern that have plagued the site recently, after spammers targeted Facebook users last weekend with harmful malware disguised as an application sent by friends in their network.

A survey by Ofcom earlier this month also revealed that British web users are increasingly less likely to share information online, due to growing fears of privacy breaches on Facebook and other social sites.

Home | Careers | RSS | Contact Us | Newsletter

International sites: