Facebook says it can locate users who opt out of tracking
Facebook says it can locate users who opt out of tracking
AFP•
In the missive, which was widely
shared on social media Tuesday, Facebook explained ways it can still figure out
where people are after they have selected not to share precise location data
with the company.
The social network, which was
responding to a request for information by two senators, contended that knowing
a user's whereabouts has benefits ranging from showing ads for nearby shops to
fighting hackers and battling misinformation.
"There is no opting out. No
control over your personal information," Republican Senator Josh Hawley
said in a tweet.
"That's Big Tech. And that's
why Congress needs to take action."
Facebook said that clues for
figuring out a user's location include being tagged in a photo at a specific place
or a check-in at a location such as at a restaurant during a dinner with
friends.
People may share an address for
purchases at a shopping section at Facebook, or simply include it in their
profile information.
Along with location information
shared in posts by users, devices connecting to the internet are given IP
addresses and a user's whereabouts can then be noted.
Those addresses include
locations, albeit a bit imprecise when it comes to mobile devices linking
through telecom services that might only note a town or city.
Facebook said knowing a user's
general location helps it and other internet firms protect accounts by
detecting when suspicious login behavior occurs, such as by someone in South
America when a user lives in Europe.
IP addresses also help companies
such as Facebook battle misinformation by showing the general origin of
potentially nefarious activity, such as a stream of politically oriented posts
which might be aimed at a particular country.
Facebook said recently that it is
ready for a data privacy law that is to go into effect in its home state of
California at the start of next year.
The California Consumer Privacy
Act (CCPA) will give internet users the right to see what data big tech
companies collect and with whom it is shared.
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