Considering Facebook, um, questionable track record on all privacy stuffWould you think the company would learn to stop leaning on the phrase when launching new products that promise to be safe and secure when the company really medium they’re safe from everyone except, you know, Facebook.
None of this prevented the company from bragging about its new privacy protection feature. For Facebook Messenger in a blog post Jay Sullivan, who spearheaded all things “privacy” (in quotes) and “security” (again, in quotes) related to the Messenger service, ruled it out today.
The optional feature, called “app lock,” adds “another layer of security to your private messages,” by requiring you to use your phone’s fingerprint or facial sensor technology to open your Mmessenger account. Sullivan added, “This optional feature gives you the confidence to know that if a friend or family member needs to borrow your phone, they won’t be able to access your chats.”
It’s an environment that keeps your chats safe, say, from a snooping roommate, but it really does nothing to keep your chats safe from Facebook, which has already proven to be more than comfortable monetizing anything that happens on any Facebook property, including Messayist And despite the fact that Sullivan was quick to point out that “their tactile or facial identification is not transmitted or stored on Facebook”, you should ask yourself how truthful the company is here, considering how they have had no trouble storing personal data like voice chats done on the platform before. And even if It is not storage Your face Through this new feature, it doesn’t detract from the fact that the company probably already has dozens of images of its face. upload photos to your profile.
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Sullivan goes on to say that the new feature is being rolled out on iOS devices today and will be available on Android “in the coming months.” He added (our emphasis):
You can find this feature in the new Privacy Settings section. The Privacy section makes it easy to access settings and features, such as hearing your stories, muted stories, and blocked people. The app lock and Privacy section allow you to tailor your experience and choose the setting that works best for you. We are always working to give you more control over your privacy.As we introduce more privacy features, you will have this central place to find them.
It’s funny that Facebook, like some other giants in the technological space, it has a weird blind spot when it comes to “giving you more control over your privacy”. Everyone seems willing to make privacy-related promises in the name of keeping, for example, your valuable data monetized by a competitoror keep your Chat out of the line of sight of a sniffing partner. But when it comes to offering some protection from the company itself, all these promises fall much shorter that any of us has expected.
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