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Big Mac · 04:43 AM

Facebook is really starting to annoy me. I don't use it that often because it gets annoying in general, but friends and associates like to communicate on there so I feel compelled to stay around. Here's what just really bothered me today:

I wanted to update my profile to include my personal Twitter account since I'm using it (Twitter annoys me too, but it's less of an annoyance). So I was looking through my profile information links and came to my contact information. I was astonished to see that one of my two personal cell phone numbers was listed instead of the voice mail number I used to list on there. I don't know how it possibly got on to my profile, but it really bothers me. I know that I never would have knowingly put that number in my profile. I realized from the outset that Facebook was very insecure, so I never put anything all that private up. I would bet a thousand dollars right now that I never knowingly put that number in my profile.

Not only do I not remember ever putting that number in my profile, I also don't remember having any interaction between Facebook and that number at all. I thought that perhaps I got duped by some feature that may have asked for my cell phone as a security measure (which I think the service does now), but I can't recall that happening on my account. The only thing I can possibly think of is that they may be harvesting at a very deep level your Facebook mail Sent folder - that maybe I sent a message to someone and gave that person my private number. It's far fetched, but I can't think of any other possibility.

My recommendation to everyone is that they check their profile regularly for private information that shouldn't be there, or maybe should cancel their Facebook accounts entirely. I'm mulling that second option right now.

Andy8 · Feb 10, 2011, 04:41 AM

Originally Posted by Big Mac

My recommendation to everyone is that they check their profile regularly for private information that shouldn't be there, or maybe should cancel their Facebook accounts entirely. I'm mulling that second option right now.

There is life after FB.

Go for it!

Big Mac · Feb 10, 2011, 07:49 AM

As I said before, I put a voice mail number on Facebook. That's the number I've always seen on my profile until I looked today, and I have no recollection of giving FB my private cell. I think the change may have happened with the new profile format, but since I wasn't actively using Facebook when that change took place I can't be sure.

Andy8 · Feb 10, 2011, 08:19 AM

Do you use FB to sign into to any other site that may list your phone numbers?

Big Mac · Feb 10, 2011, 08:20 AM

Nope, not that I know of.

Doofy · Feb 10, 2011, 08:36 AM

Try privacy -> apps -> instant personalisation.
Turn it off.

Big Mac · Feb 10, 2011, 08:37 AM

I'll check it out, thank you Doofy.

MacinTommy · Feb 10, 2011, 09:07 AM

Hello my name is Tommy and I used to be on Facebook. I've been free (permanent delete not just deactivated) of the evil grasp since July 2010. In that time, I've kept up with all of my friends and even made new friends! My recommendation to all is to either delete your FB account or just delete/clean up your friends. It's very liberating.

BadKosh · Feb 10, 2011, 09:23 AM

Facebook is so last year. Get a real life, the challenges of real-time, face to face communication is better for you.

Big Mac · Feb 10, 2011, 09:28 AM

Facebook isn't my life. It's a minor time waster and potentially a big security hole.

Wiskedjak · Feb 10, 2011, 09:33 AM

Originally Posted by Big Mac

As I said before, I put a voice mail number on Facebook. That's the number I've always seen on my profile until I looked today, and I have no recollection of giving FB my private cell. I think the change may have happened with the new profile format, but since I wasn't actively using Facebook when that change took place I can't be sure.

Do you have any theories on how Facebook may have gotten that number without you adding it? There are only a few possibilities I can see. The first 2 would be illegal, in which case you should pursue legal action against FB. The 3rd is highly unlikely. The 4th is most likely.

- Facebook reached into your computer and extracted it
- Facebook scoured your email and found it
- Facebook did a complex search of the Internet and constructed it based on your activities
- You added it, forgot that you did so, and will eventually be out $1000

Big Mac · 09:55 AM

I certainly never entered it into my profile. Ever. I would never do that. I intentionally took steps when I first signed up with Facebook to make my profile less revealing than it otherwise would be: A throwaway voice line instead of a real phone number and something other than my real city. (I don't live in the city of Los Angeles.) I'm a very straight-laced guy who has never gotten drunk (have an occasional drink but never drunk) and never tried a single illicit drug, so I know I didn't do it during some altered state.

Also, when I go on Facebook, one of the common things I do is look at my profile, so if it happened a while back I would have seen it.

I'm going to search my phone for text messages from Facebook. I don't remember doing anything on that phone related to Facebook, but I'm going to look to make sure. I don't play any Facebook games or buy friends any virtual gifts or do any crap of the sort, so it couldn't be from that. I'm also going to look into Doofy's suggestion.

I've often wondered about the security implications of sites that have Facebook plugins that identify you with your profile picture and name just by going to those external, non-Facebook sites. Maybe a site I purchased something from had a Facebook plugin spying on my details. But if that were the case, it would have been more likely to have gotten my home number than my cell.

Upon further reflection, I think I faintly recall that when I signed in for the first time in weeks I must have gotten a security notice that FB wanted to "secure" my account by linking it to my cell phone. It probably wouldn't let me access my account otherwise. I must have had to give a real cell phone number so that I could receive the confirmation text. If that's what happened, I had no idea that would end up changing the number shown on my profile. Bastards.

andi*pandi · Feb 10, 2011, 10:42 AM

^I got that message but ignored it successfully. If I forget my password they can email it to me.

Interesting. I just went to my account settings, and saw my cell there. I admit maybe I didn't bypass the above question. However, when I deleted my cell and clicked save, my home number appeared instead. Now I've deleted that let's see if the fields repropagate.

Big Mac · Feb 10, 2011, 10:51 AM

They just love to hold on to and misuse data, don't they? I tried twice to put a burner (prepaid) cell number in the field, but even though it said it saved the change it kept reverting back to my private cell. Only when I deleted the number altogether did it change over to displaying the burner cell.

I think Facebook may be a disease.

ShortcutToMoncton · Feb 10, 2011, 12:40 PM

I seriously don't get the big deal - you gave your cell number to Facebook, and now you're mad they have it?

Or are you still proposing they go through everyone's Sent FB Mail and harvest whatever random phone numbers are typed in there and put them in people's profiles?

Where's the problem here?

Spheric Harlot · Feb 10, 2011, 01:11 PM

I never thought I'd see a thread with "Facebook" and "Privacy Complaint" in the title and a confused first post.

"Bears Really Starting to Annoy Me (Shit in Woods)" - MacNN Forums

Big Mac · 01:48 PM

Originally Posted by ShortcutToMoncton

I seriously don't get the big deal - you gave your cell number to Facebook, and now you're mad they have it?

Or are you still proposing they go through everyone's Sent FB Mail and harvest whatever random phone numbers are typed in there and put them in people's profiles?

Where's the problem here?

The problem is, if the site forces me to use a cell phone to verify my account for "security," it shouldn't change my public profile to that new cell phone number without my knowledge. I didn't type that phone number into the phone number field of my profile, so it shouldn't have been done automatically.

It would almost be like Facebook asking me for my mother's maiden name for the purpose of password retrieval and then taking the name I provide and putting it in my public profile (without any warning). It's not a perfect analogy, granted, but I hope you get the point.

besson3c · Feb 10, 2011, 01:40 PM

I get your point, Big Mac.

The question is, where is all of this headed in a much larger picture sense, looking at FB's global impact and its impact on our society in particular, so far as security is concerned?

Big Mac · Feb 10, 2011, 01:44 PM

Good question. I think the bigger picture is something like this: Facebook is currently enormously popular; Facebook has repeatedly shown it is untrustworthy in the area of privacy. Ergo, privacy is degraded globally because of Facebook's popularity.

Doofy · Feb 10, 2011, 01:44 PM

SETEC ASTRONOMY
Allcaps

ort888 · Feb 10, 2011, 01:50 PM

Big Mac, send me a PM with your cell number and facebook login and password and I'll see if I can fix this for you.

Big Mac · Feb 10, 2011, 01:52 PM

Okay, I'll send it to your Anus.

ShortcutToMoncton · Feb 10, 2011, 02:40 PM

Originally Posted by Big Mac

The problem is, if the site forces me to use a cell phone to verify my account for "security," it shouldn't change my public profile to that new cell phone number without my knowledge. I didn't type that phone number into the phone number field of my profile, so it shouldn't have been done automatically.

It would almost be like Facebook asking me for my mother's maiden name for the purpose of password retrieval and then taking the name I provide and putting it in my public profile (without any warning). It's not a perfect analogy, granted, but I hope you get the point.

This makes more sense - but have we figured out yet that this is the case?

(I don't log in using my phone so I've never gotten that message I guess.)

besson3c · Feb 10, 2011, 02:46 PM

Originally Posted by Big Mac

Good question. I think the bigger picture is something like this: Facebook is currently enormously popular; Facebook has repeatedly shown it is untrustworthy in the area of privacy. Ergo, privacy is degraded globally because of Facebook's popularity.

My concern is not really with Facebook though, because if Facebook were to cease to exist some copycat would replace it.

My concern is with our attitudes and what we are willing to put up with and/or understand accurately, as a society. I'm under no illusion that people can or will understand web security or anything on a technical level, but people are also very easily manipulated, and many take a blasé and/or lazy attitude with this stuff.

Big Mac · Feb 10, 2011, 02:50 PM

Originally Posted by ShortcutToMoncton

This makes more sense - but have we figured out yet that this is the case?

I'm now pretty sure that's what happened.

(I don't log in using my phone so I've never gotten that message I guess.)

The thing is, I didn't login using my phone. I logged in on my desktop, but it told me I needed to link my account to a cell phone per their new security requirement.

Doofy · Feb 10, 2011, 03:05 PM

Yes, they do that. I'm constantly bombarded with notices saying that my security status is "very low" and that I need to give them my cell number to improve it. They can go jump.

iLikebeer · Feb 11, 2011, 05:50 AM

Originally Posted by Big Mac

I'm now pretty sure that's what happened.

The thing is, I didn't login using my phone. I logged in on my desktop, but it told me I needed to link my account to a cell phone per their new security requirement.

That's not what it said. It said "Your account is not secure." in a flashy warning on the top right of the screen. If you clicked on it, it explained that by not secure, they meant that if you forget your password, the only way to log back into your account is to request your password by email. You then gave them your phone number. Tens of millions of us said "screw those hippies, I'm not giving them my phone number." FB still works for us. You got social engineered by FB.

People are naive. They give more information than they need to. Look at apartment applications nowadays. They will often ask for your social security number, checking account number, bank branch location, and credit references. They don't need any of that, but people willingly give it all out without blinking.

Wiskedjak · Feb 11, 2011, 09:34 AM

Originally Posted by Big Mac

The thing is, I didn't login using my phone. I logged in on my desktop, but it told me I needed to link my account to a cell phone per their new security requirement.

I've seen that request from them, usually when I'm traveling and they want to verify that I am who they say I am. Somehow (can't remember how), I was able to verify that I was me without giving them my cell number ... there's still 1-2% (exaggerating, hopefully) of the population that doesn't have a cell phone, so FB can't force cellular verification.

andi*pandi · Feb 11, 2011, 01:47 PM

In case you didn't see this... I got this warning today from my FB peeps:

Tomorrow Facebook will change its settings to allow Zombies to come into your house while you sleep and eat your brains with a sharpened spoon. To stop this from happening go to Accounts> Home Invasion Settings> Cannibalism> Brains and un-check the "Tasty" box. Please copy and re-post.

PB2K · Feb 12, 2011, 07:48 AM

Yesterday I noticed the name of an ex girlfriend in the "people you may know" corner of the FB screen. That was very odd. I think she googled me or something and viewed my profile because she is not in my mail list. How does that work?

ghporter · Feb 12, 2011, 09:20 AM

Everything you ever do online is permanent. It's archived somewhere, and Google can find it. That probably means that Facebook can find it too. Old emails, forum discussions, etc. help connect those dots. Facebook tries to help people get connected with others they may have lost touch with, and I'd be surprised if they didn't have spiders looking for email addresses of Facebook members so they could connect their email recipients with the members...

Doofy · Feb 12, 2011, 09:35 AM

Originally Posted by Wiskedjak

there's still 1-2% (exaggerating, hopefully) of the population that doesn't have a cell phone

Why "hopefully"? Cell phones are shite.

Person Man · Feb 12, 2011, 05:06 PM

Originally Posted by PB2K

Yesterday I noticed the name of an ex girlfriend in the "people you may know" corner of the FB screen. That was very odd. I think she googled me or something and viewed my profile because she is not in my mail list. How does that work?

Probably one of your friends is friends with her. Once I started adding friends it started showing me some of their friends as "people I may know."

Brien · Feb 12, 2011, 05:16 PM

Privacy is dead.

bstone · Feb 12, 2011, 07:46 PM

Facebook doesn't automatically insert a phone number that you haven't put it. I think you put it in there and just forgot about it.

Laminar · Feb 12, 2011, 09:20 PM

Originally Posted by bstone

Facebook doesn't automatically insert a phone number that you haven't put it. I think you put it in there and just forgot about it.

Brilliant! Thank you for your contribution.

Originally Posted by Big Mac

Upon further reflection, I think I faintly recall that when I signed in for the first time in weeks I must have gotten a security notice that FB wanted to "secure" my account by linking it to my cell phone. It probably wouldn't let me access my account otherwise. I must have had to give a real cell phone number so that I could receive the confirmation text. If that's what happened, I had no idea that would end up changing the number shown on my profile. Bastards.

bstone · Feb 12, 2011, 09:22 PM

Originally Posted by Laminar

Brilliant! Thank you for your contribution.

You're welcome.

Sealobo · Feb 13, 2011, 07:00 PM

since i started playing World of Warcraft, i more or less stopped visiting Facebook. I feel great cuz i finally managed to get FB out of my life.

Big Mac · Feb 14, 2011, 01:40 AM

Haha. Pick your poison I suppose.

Big Mac · 07:44 AM

I just found out that I don't have to worry about Facebook violating my privacy anymore. They just obliterated my and many of my friends' accounts. They (and those whose pressure they respond to) dislike our politics so much they killed my account without any warning.

Good riddance!

ShortcutToMoncton · Feb 17, 2011, 07:56 AM

...what? They deleted your account because of your politics?

Big Mac · 08:50 AM

Yeah, they did. There's heavy repression of political speech or even what I'd call mere political socializing on Facebook, but only if you have some level of notoriety and a certain level of Facebook activity related thereto. And then only if you're unpopular with certain vocal circles. If you're remotely known and people don't like your views, you (and your friends in the same circle) can easily get summarily booted. We weren't even saying anything really at all controversial. (In fact, I've aired those political views on here in the past and aroused some praise, little criticism and no forum violations.)

Too bad, I should have closed my own account first when I figured out how they revealed my cell phone. I'm not fired, I quit!

andi*pandi · Feb 17, 2011, 08:37 AM

That's strange!

Wiskedjak · Feb 17, 2011, 09:23 AM

Very disturbing, but, how do you know that they deleted your account because of your politics?

andi*pandi · Feb 17, 2011, 09:28 AM

I've seen some broad politics on facebook, both sides.

Another creepy thing. I don't have any of my neighbors or people I know from my kid's school on Facebook. But in the "people you may know" box showed up the mother of my son's friend. The only way I can think that they made that connection is by looking at our addresses on a map, we live close by.

Big Mac · Feb 17, 2011, 09:30 AM

Originally Posted by Wiskedjak

Very disturbing, but, how do you know that they deleted your account because of your politics?

One of my friends who was much more active on Facebook realized our accounts were deleted yesterday. They deleted his account, another friend's and the small private groups my friend ran on those political topics. I briefly looked at his message yesterday morning but was too tired to realize that we had gotten deleted, and I didn't realize it happened until I tried to friend someone tonight and couldn't login.

Wiskedjak · Feb 17, 2011, 09:38 AM

So, you're speculating based on a cluster of your friends with similar view points having been deleted? I don't doubt you, but you do have a habit of jumping to extreme conclusions and I was wondering if Facebook notified you or if it's a puzzle you're piecing together.

Big Mac · 09:51 AM

Haha, no I'm sure about why this occurred. It's pretty clear what has occurred when a small group of friends all part of the same private political Facebook groups with a handful of members get their accounts and the groups terminated at the same time.

Besides that, though, we had a much larger public Facebook group with around 1000 members that was around for years before being closed down last year because of supposed violations of Facebook's TOS, and at that point I was warned about being connected to any subsequent violating groups/content. I wanted to quit Facebook at that point, but my friends wanted me to stay on and I didn't feel like actually closing my account (because I enjoyed it on some level), but now I realize I should have. My account may have gotten axed because my friend made me an administrator of the private groups he created to replace the one they eliminated, or it could have been an accumulation of complaints by our enemies that caused a general sweep.

Facebook sucks.

Person Man · Feb 17, 2011, 09:48 AM

Originally Posted by andi*pandi

I've seen some broad politics on facebook, both sides.

Another creepy thing. I don't have any of my neighbors or people I know from my kid's school on Facebook. But in the "people you may know" box showed up the mother of my son's friend. The only way I can think that they made that connection is by looking at our addresses on a map, we live close by.

Is your son on your friends list? If he is then it may have used his friends' data to make that connection. I don't think they're looking at addresses. If they were I would have people's names from my neighborhood showing up as "people I may know," but they're not.

Person Man · Feb 17, 2011, 09:50 AM

Originally Posted by Big Mac

Too bad, I should have closed my own account first when I figured out how they revealed my cell phone. I'm not fired, I quit!

Your account may not have been deleted; just suspended. If that's the case, wait about a month or so, then try to log in. If you're successful, then delete all your content and delete your account permanently if you're serious about leaving Facebook for good.