Facebook Defendant Of Giving Over Sixty Device-Makers Deep Access To User Data

After beingness embroiled into controversies over its data sharing practices, it turns out that Facebook had granted inappropriate access to its users' information to to a greater extent than than sixty device makers, including Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, Blackberry, in addition to Samsung.

According to a lengthy written report published past times The New York Times, the social network giant struck data-sharing partnerships alongside at to the lowest degree sixty device industry companies thence that they could offering Facebook messaging functions, "Like" buttons, address books, in addition to other features without requiring their users to install a dissever app.

The agreements were reportedly made over the final 10 years, starting earlier Facebook apps were widely available on smartphones.

Most notably, the publication suggests that the partnerships could hold out inwards breach of a 2011 consent decree past times the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which barred Facebook from granting other companies access to data of users' Facebook friends without their explicit consent​.

During the Cambridge Analytica scandal revealed inwards March this year, Facebook stated that it already ceased allowing such third-party access inwards 2015 only, but the publication suggests that this does non include "makers of cellphones, tablets in addition to other hardware."

Facebook is nether heavy burn downwardly since the revelation that consultancy describe of piece of job solid Cambridge Analytica had misused information of 87 i K m Facebook users to assist Donald Trump win the States presidency inwards 2016.

In a recent exam conducted past times an NYT reporter on a 2013 Blackberry device using his Facebook concern human relationship alongside roughly 550 friends, a BlackBerry app called "The Hub" was notwithstanding able to harvest private information from 556 of his friends, including their religious in addition to political views.

Not alone that, but The Hub was also able to larn "identifying information" for upwards to 294,258 friends of his Facebook friends.

Here's What Facebook Has to Say About this:

Facebook, who said inwards front end of Congress inwards March that "every slice of content that you lot portion on Facebook you lot own. You convey consummate command over who sees it in addition to how you lot portion it," responded to the NYT written report later on Lord's Day inwards a blog post entitled "Why We Disagree alongside The New York Times."

In the post, Facebook said the fellowship created the APIs for Amazon, Apple, Blackberry, HTC, Microsoft, Samsung in addition to other device makers thence that they could render Facebook features on their operating systems at a fourth dimension when in that place were no apps or app stores.

The post, written past times VP of Product Partnerships Ime Archibong, said the information agreements alongside the device makers were a necessity:

"In the early on days of mobile, the involve for Facebook outpaced our mightiness to create versions of the production that worked on every telephone or operating system. It's difficult to shout upwards now, but dorsum thence in that place were no app stores." 

"So companies similar Facebook, Google, Twitter in addition to YouTube had to piece of job straight alongside operating organisation in addition to device manufacturers to become their products into people's hands. This took a lot of time—and Facebook was non able to become to everyone." 

"To brace this gap, nosotros built a laid of device-integrated APIs that allowed companies to recreate Facebook-like experiences for their private devices or operating systems. Over the final decade, closed to sixty companies convey used them—including many menage names such every bit Amazon, Apple, Blackberry, HTC, Microsoft, in addition to Samsung."

The postal service farther said that Facebook controlled these APIs tightly in addition to that its partners signed agreements that prevented Facebook users' information from beingness used for anything other than to "recreate Facebook-like experience."

"Partners could non integrate the user's Facebook features alongside their devices without the user's permission. And our partnership in addition to engineering teams approved the Facebook experiences these companies built," the postal service reads.

"Contrary to claims past times the New York Times, friends' information, similar photos, was alone accessible on devices when people made a conclusion to portion their information alongside those friends. We are non aware of whatever abuse past times these companies."

Due to the popularity of iOS in addition to Android few people rely on these APIs to create bespoke Facebook experiences, which is why the social network giant began "winding down" the partnerships inwards April, in addition to thence far ended 22 of these partnerships.