Once you’ve signed into Facebook on your computer’s web browser, the social network follows you around the web – regardless of whether you later sign out of your account.
And a lawsuit alleging that the company breaks the law by doing so was recently dismissed by a federal judge, reports Olivia Solon of The Guardian.
Ms. Solon writes:
A judge has dismissed a lawsuit accusing Facebook of tracking users’ web browsing activity even after they logged out of the social networking site.
The plaintiffs alleged that Facebook used the “like” buttons found on other websites to track which sites they visited, meaning that the Menlo Park, California-headquartered company could build up detailed records of their browsing history. ...
The case was dismissed partly due to a judgement that the plaintiffs lacked a valid claim ...
US district judge Edward Davila in San Jose, California, dismissed the case because he said that the plaintiffs failed to show that they had a reasonable expectation of privacy or suffered any realistic economic harm or loss.
... but the court also stated that the Facebook users who filed the suit had not made use of privacy tools that could have helped shield their information.
Davila said that plaintiffs could have taken steps to keep their browsing histories private, for example by using the Digital Advertising Alliance’s opt-out tool or using “incognito mode”, and failed to show that Facebook illegally “intercepted” or eavesdropped on their communications.
So, about those privacy methods ...
First, some background:
Facebook tracks you across the web by leaving data files on your computer once you visit their site. These “cookies," as they’re more commonly known, are a staple of modern web browsing – they’re the reason sites like Amazon.com or your email account stay signed in between visits.
Facebook uses cookies in the same way. According to Ms. Solon:
Responding to [questions raised by an Australian blogger in 2011], Facebook engineer Gregg Stefancik confirmed that Facebook has cookies that persist after log-out as a safety measure (to prevent others from trying to access the account) but that the company does not use the cookies to track users or sell personal information to third parties.
According to the article, however, Facebook now uses its cookies for reasons other than user security – most notably, advertising.
[I]n 2014 Facebook started using web browsing data for delivering targeted “interest-based” advertising – which explains why you see ads for products you have already been looking at online appear in your Facebook feed.
To address privacy concerns, Facebook introduced a way for users to opt out of this type of advertising targeting from within user settings.
Ways to limit Facebook's data gathering
You can adjust your Facebook user settings here. And if you’re interested in the Digital Advertising Alliance’s consumer choice program, more info is available on their website.
Click on the following links to learn about using private or incognito browsing on Chrome (Desktop, Android, and iOS), Firefox, Safari on Mac, and Safari on iOS devices.
Another way to lessen the tracking is to clear your browser’s cookies after signing out of Facebook. Keep in mind, though, that doing this will also log you out of other websites – including your email account, if you access your email through a web browser.
Follow these links to learn how to clear cookies from Chrome, Firefox, Safari on Mac, and Safari on iOS devices.
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Just a quick note before we go: The Glen Civic Association does not recommend or endorse any online security programs, tools, or methods. It is strongly recommended that individuals independently and thoroughly research companies and their products and services before purchasing those products or subscribing to those services.
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