Facebook Bans Advertisers From Stealing Your Photo To Sell Stuff To Your Friends
Facebook has firmly told app developers that it's not okay for them to steal your wife's photo from her profile page and use it to entice others into a sexy local singles dating service.
According to Facebook, this has never been allowed:
Please remember that developers have never been allowed to send user data received from Facebook to ad networks, and we take firm action against this. If you run code provided by an ad network in the operation of your application, be sure you understand what this code does.
Except of course for the part where it happened and they made money of it.
Jacking people's personal content without their consent to use in ads has never been okay, says Facebook, but now the smack is being laid down, now that the rest of the internet has noticed one month after we posted about it.
A point of clarification: in a previous post about this, we said that there was a way within the settings to opt-out of the ads using your photos in Facebook. That's just for official Facebook ads themselves, not for ads deployed by 3rd-party apps. Apologies.
Good Ads Make for a Good Ecosystem [Facebook Developer's Blog]
Facebook Advertising Guidelines [Facebook]
(Photo: Gauldo)
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Comments:
this is like that time FDA told people not to put salmonella in food.
@KTK1990: New Advertising Guidelines, paragraph 3, sentence 1.
"ads that display user data are not allowed in Platform applications unless specifically approved by Facebook."
Now I'm not going to know if my friends want me to take an IQ quiz or not.
You mean that five of my friends don't really think I'm dumb?!
part 6.B
Unless authorized by us, your ads may not display user data -- such as users' names or profile photos -- whether that data was obtained from Facebook or otherwise.
So it's still allowed, you just have to get Facebook's permission?
and yes, that "?" was intended, I'm not 100% sure that's the only applicable rule or how hard it is to get their permission.
@KTK1990: I thought i was replying to you, but i managed to create a new discussion down that way (points to bottom of page).
But then how would other people on Facebook know that I, as a hot local single, want them to meet me?
This was a valuable service I am sorry to have lost.
@l951b951: I think that loophole is for them and their approved advertising partners.
Look out for the Facebook Verizon Giveaway!! Look, your friends *insert profile pics* have signed up! Sign up today!
@l951b951:
But Facebook's shenanigans are cheeky and fun! Yeah, and other advertiser's shenanigans are cruel and tragic. Which... makes them not really shenanigans at all. Evil shenanigans!
They're not your pictures. Users are voluntarily uploading them to a third-party that has clearly-written rules. Get them to change, or don't use it. With the amount of personal data FB has on us, is this really such a big concern?
@undefined: @socalrob of the 24 and a half century:
You mean to say that it was all a lie?
[disapprove]
The odd thing is, I remember when my friends' pictures started showing up in those quiz advertisments. I didn't think twice about it.
I try to (begrudgingly) keep up with Facebook's privacy changes but I don't understand why people get their panties all in a bunch when Facebook "violates" their privacy. How can you expect privacy on Facebook anymore?
My position is that Facebook irritates the hell out of me but I'll stay there anyway until my boredom with the site outweighs the social convenience.
I got a little annoyed when I looked on my girlfriend's monitor while she was on Facebook, and it had my photo and my name, and it said that my IQ was (insert random bullshit number). It was about 30 points lower than my actual IQ, and I've never taken their stupid online IQ test either.
I really don't like my personal data being used for ads, and I especially don't like false advertising being used with my personal info in it.
It probably says something about your IQ if you actually participate in Facebook. I'm not sure what.
How to fix: Click on SETTINGS (located on top of page in blue bar, next to logout); Select PRIVACY SETTINGS; Select NEWS FEEDS and WALL; Select the TAB that reads Facebook Ads. There will be a drop down box; Select NO ONE. * Note that if you have an ad-blocker, the drop-down menu will not be visible (sneaky fuckers)
@humphrmi: Whoops, and here's the fix:
1. Use and editor to edit C:\WINDOWS\system32\drivers\etc\hosts
2. add the following entry:
127.0.0.1 www.facebook.com
3. Save & exit
Done and done.
"The rest of the Internet" links to a Consumerist article. Umm.... ?
They don't have some sort of approval system for apps that access Facebook data? If this was against the rules all along, how come so many apps got away with it?
@suburbancowboy: I have to wonder how this isn't all illegal-ish. Nobody's searched for me, my IQ is just fine, nobody has indicated they want to meet me, all contrary to what FB ads have told me. I know some dating websites have gotten in trouble for fake "You have a new contact! Click here to sign up!" emails; Not sure how this is much different. I guess I'd have to show material damage from other people being told my IQ is 110, though.
Couldn't you sue the web site for false advertising? They are advertising you could findd your wife under hot singles and if shes not there then they misled you.
hmmm sounds like a plan to me
But some can still show your pic if they get approval by Facebook.