Imagine being talented and having your big heroes journey be within the context of something that is a net negative for the world.
‘People You May Know’ helped Facebook grow exponentially
111–120 of 155 posts
Re: ‘People You May Know’ helped Facebook grow exponentially
#112In the early days, Facebook logged into user's email accounts and stole contact information without users' knowledge or authorization. This was possible because people used the same password for their email and Facebook, a practice common especially back in those days. This is one of their sources for PYMK. In fact Facebook has used this technique very recently too: A security researcher noticed the tech giant was pr…
"Unintentionally uploaded" Because you just happened to accidentally interact with the API in just the right way and downloaded the information to just the right database and deployed a service to production which just happens to access that data... I don't understand how that statement right there isn't literally incriminating evidence. They admitted to uploading the data explicitly, and "unintentional" is a straigh…
That takes a lot of code and effort moreso necessary for it to ever be accidental. We really need a system where courts can have a jury of relevant people from the relevant industry. Imagine if the jury for Oracle v Google were made up of software developers every single time how much more effective and meaningful that would be...
Re: ‘People You May Know’ helped Facebook grow exponentially
#113Re: ‘People You May Know’ helped Facebook grow exponentially
#114Earlier quoted context omitted.
Suppose A has contacts B and C. If A chooses to share contacts with Facebook, and Facebook suggests B and C to A, I can see why you'd say that's not an invasion of privacy. If Facebook suggests A to C, that's arguably an invasion of privacy. If Facebook suggests B and C to each other, that's unarguably an invasion of privacy.
> If Facebook suggests B and C to each other, that's unarguably an invasion of privacy. How so? Alice tells me she knows Bob and Charlie. I mention Charlie to Bob - completely normal human thing to do. Maybe I think they're in the same circle but I've forgotten exactly why or how I found that out - completely normal human memory behaviour. Where's the invasion of privacy?
>Where's the invasion of privacy?
In both cases.
Yours is understandable and forgivable. Charlie's privacy may have been violated, but it was a simple mistake.
But suppose you say to Alice, "Tell me all the people you know. I'll tell you which ones I know too." If you then write down that list and systematically start telling them about each other and that they have Alice as a mutual friend, then you're a privacy-invading jerk, and Alice was wrong to trust you.
Re: ‘People You May Know’ helped Facebook grow exponentially
#115Earlier quoted context omitted.
This is not a dystopian fantasy; it's exactly how intelligence agencies map out terrorist groups' and foreign militaries' structures online. Israel is supposedly particularly good at this kind of analysis, but I'm sure other countries are doing it.
And all the "males of fighting age"
We can get heuristics with lower false positives these days.
Re: ‘People You May Know’ helped Facebook grow exponentially
#116Re: ‘People You May Know’ helped Facebook grow exponentially
#117> But monthly was a better indicator, because someone consistently on the service for a full month was likely there to stay. That is not what a monthly active user is, even at Facebook. A MAU logs in once per month, a DAU logs in once per day.
Yeah exactly, and I think it was DAU/MAU that Facebook started obsessing over, not just MAU.
Is there a difference between an "active user" and just a "user"?
Re: ‘People You May Know’ helped Facebook grow exponentially
#118I deleted my original Facebook account almost 5 years ago, and this is slightly off topic but I recently made a brand new facebook account just to use marketplace, I gave the bare minimum of information you could give and even used a brand new email address, as soon as I entered my phone number to verify my account I got the creepiest friend recommendations, they must have been pulling them from whatsapp because they were insanely accurate, and that was just with my phone number, with a brand new account and a brand new email.
Re: ‘People You May Know’ helped Facebook grow exponentially
#119Earlier quoted context omitted.
The geo thing is really happening.
Which is one big reason why the only sensible way to use Facebook on mobile is to delete the app and use only a browser, while keeping your location sensors turned off.
There is a nice app called Frost that is basically a wrapper around the web interface with convenience features, and is free (i.e., available on F-Droid).
Re: ‘People You May Know’ helped Facebook grow exponentially
#120Earlier quoted context omitted.
I also have the theory that they are using WiFi names / AP MAC addresses as well. If you happen to be connected to the same private WiFi network, you probably know each other.
Facebook has a patent for using dust and scratches on photos to track which camera they came from. But they claime(d) not to be using WiFi or Geolocation for the PYMK feature - https://gizmodo.com/facebook-knows-how-to-track-you-using-th...
Based on the track record of other Facebook claims of the "we don't do X" type, this is basically proof that they do and/or did do both of these things. Maybe "accidentially" and "unintentionally" ;-)