Beware: This Website Is Compiling Facebook Statuses and Publishing Them (Is Yours on It?)
- Posted on June 27, 2012 at 11:30am by
Liz Klimas
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How many times have Facebook users been warned to check their privacy settings and ensure more personal parts of their profiles are not visible to prying public eyes? Perhaps many were simply not worried that non-friends would be perusing through their timeline. Perhaps haven’t met 18-year-old Callum Haywood yet.
The British student and freelancer began the website “We Know What You’re Doing…” that also had the page ending line “…and we think you should stop,“ as an experiment to show people that they ”need to check their privacy settings to make sure they aren’t sharing everything,” Haywood said in an interview with Substance TV.
This screenshot shows the We Know What You're Doing website.
Some of the categories of statuses posted on the website include those who want to get fired (a.k.a. complaining about work or bosses); those who are currently hungover; and those who are taking drugs.
According to Haywood’s website, abbreviated WKWYD, all this data is already publicly available on Facebook’s Graph API. In a disclaimer he says, “I cannot be held responsible for any persons actions as a result of using this experiment. All attempts have been made to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the information provided on this website. However, the information is provided ‘as is’ without warranty of any kind.”
In his interview with Substance TV, Haywood said he intends to keep the experiment going but does acknowledge that it could change based on reactions he receives. For example:
[...] earlier today I stopped the phone numbers from being openly published, because a group of people thought that it was irresponsible of me, and I agree with them. I’m not aiming to put anyone at risk, I just want them to see what can happen.
He also acknowledges that those who allow their profile to be seen publicly could have thought it could “only be seen from within Facebook.” What they don’t realize though, Haywood told Substance TV, is that “Facebook will happily give this information out to other sites via its API.”
Haywood is kind, though. For those who may find their information on his website and want it gone, he makes the suggestion they first delete the activity from Facebook (it will then stop showing up on WKWYD) or they can contact him to block the posts.
See if everyone knows what you’re doing here.
(H/T: Business Insider)
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berlet98
Posted on July 2, 2012 at 11:45amMonumental Frauds Part Two: Facebook
(Second of five articles on monumental frauds. The first dealt with what is probably the most fraudulent piece of legislation in American history, the Affordable Care Act, better known as the Obamacare abomination. [http://www.genelalor.com/blog1/?p=26099] Parts Two though Five deal with lesser but no less fraudulent enterprises, Facebook, Google, the Washington Post, and the United Nations.)
FACEBOOK. I’m not the first to refer to Facebook.com as a fraud.
The authoritative Tech News World said it and substantiated the charge in May, based on the company’s deceptive revenue, profit, advertising, and user reports. Rob Enderle concluded his “Facebook Is a Fraud” piece by writing, “I think (Mark) Zuckerberg’s going to learn the Bernie Madoff lesson–that taking advantage of trust has a very high cost at the CEO level.”
However, that betrayal of trust goes far beyond manipulating numbers.
Originally planned by Zuckerberg and three fellow Harvard students as a website designed to identify college hotties for horny, Ivy League lechers, Facebook has been in business for some eight years. During that brief time it has been beset by various lawsuits, minor and major scandals, yet now claims almost a billion members worldwide.
Thanks to its recent Initial Public Offering, Facebook has made Zuckerberg a multi-billionaire
Report Post »Brooke Lorren
Posted on June 28, 2012 at 5:58amMost of the time, I want my status public. Then I can get them to buy my stuff, LOL. If I want something to be semi-private, I set the individual post to “Friends Only”.
But then again, I usually drink once a year (and then, never more than one drink), about the hardest drug I ever take is caffeine, and since I work for myself, I’m not likely to fire myself, even if I complain about what a slave-driver I am… LOL.
Report Post »54smom
Posted on June 28, 2012 at 2:00amI live in the country, so at night I can see the satellites. Ever wonder what they are looking at??
Report Post »Just wondering.
Constantine Ivanov
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 10:31pmThose idiots who put their sensitive private information on Facebook, Twitter and other similar sites deserve such publishing. Otherwise they will never learn a lesson and will keep being idiots.
Report Post »Their idiocy might be genetic, though
Meyvn
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 5:24pmNot mine.
Report Post »Chrisknits
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 3:12pmAt least I won’t show up there. Besides having my profile private, I don’t have a boss to hate, don’t drink enough to even get tipsy-so no hangovers, don’t do drugs-unless they are prescribed by Dr-and even then I can’t stomach them, and I do not have a new phone number. And even if I did qualify for any of it, I wouldn’t put it on FB! Sheesh, I fear for our future generation.
Report Post »Obamujahadeen
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 3:09pmThe real offenders of this are the elderly and young. I haven‘t used my real name online in 12 years and that’s just a fact. It‘s not necessary and I’m not putting it out there and make sure people who think they know who I might be will NEVER figure it out. EVER.
I‘m out here in the weeds throwing my verbal Molotov cocktails of truth and dispelling O propaganda wherever it’s found by the left wherever I find them and they’ll do blind looking for this operative ; )
Report Post »teacherbil
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 4:20pm@OBAMUJAHADEEN You just THINK nobody will ever figure out it’s you….
Report Post »Megatron
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 2:01pmHaha- What a great site this kid came up with. Maybe this will show people they are being too free with their info?
I got rid of Facebook a while back- Its nice to live in the real world and not self-promote every move I make. And I value a few friends over a million I will never see again.
Facebook is Whack. Leave, and create an account in the real world.
Report Post »MrKnowItAll
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 1:04pmWe stood back and let them put cameras everywhere. If anyone is worried about their life being known. That’s way to late. They know where you have gone, where you are going, what you are doing, what you like to eat. Everything. Bought any new appliance or electronics in the last two years. SMART CHIPS! Know what your doing in your home, when. The Future….. WHAT IS THE FORTH AMENDMENT SON? I Think it’s some old thing they used to have here in the OLD United States!
Report Post »FatManChew
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 12:26pmYour privacy is no different on Facebook than it is in the middle of Time Square. If you don‘t want the world to know then don’t post it.
Report Post »Locked
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 12:13pm… what a dumb site. As far as I can see, there are no filter options or search parameters. The likelihood of finding your status out of the 500 million people on facebook is… well, 1 in 500,000,000. And if the folks using facebook are posting these statuses without checking their security, then they’re probably too dumb to keep in your company anyway.
Spokeo is much creepier, as it can usually give a decent approximation (if not exact data) on your name, age, occupation, home address, telephone number, and e-mail.
Report Post »Cavallo
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 12:12pmShould start thinking about shutting down my FB account altogether. They’re sneaky, unethical, and pompous. Although, if I paid for an account I might have more ground to complain.
Report Post »RedManBlueState
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 12:36pmCancelling is too little, too late. I hope you used an alias and a hotmail account when you created your account in the first place.
Report Post »JUSTANOTHEROPINION
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 12:05pmSeems to me privacy should be first and prominent. Instead of having to check the box not to share, you should have to check a box to share. Something is not right at facebook.
Report Post »lukerw
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 11:36am‘I know what you did last Summer’!
Report Post »JRook
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 11:53amAnd let’s be clear. The 20 plus third party cookies that are loaded by the blaze are retrieving and compiling data on users which is sold to any company who wants to buy them. As in most situations in life. It is not the obvious or extreme individuals or actions that you need to worry about. It is the individuals and actions that hide beneath the extremes who are the most guilty and commit the most heinous offenses.
Report Post »G-WHIZ
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 12:04pmIf you “needed” that abortion, should have not had that “great-sex”, months-earlier!
Report Post »If you “needed” to have- to-have F-Buk and all your info is now 110%-public, and you’re “now-upset”,Dont “sighn-up” inthe first-place!! Dubbl-tripple-Duh!!!!!!
M13
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 12:05pmJrook is an idiot and a liar, please pay no attention to this dope.
Report Post »anomnomnommm
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 12:16pm@ JROOK
I agree. Facebook gets a lot of attention and while I am glad that people are being made aware of privacy issues on the internet, it also takes attention off of every other source of data mining and selling.
Report Post »Locked
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 12:40pm@M13
“Jrook is an idiot and a liar, please pay no attention to this dope.”
Jrook can be an idiot, but he’s right in this case. A lot of the ad content here is generated based on cookies looking for your search history. Denying this makes you look like a dope. I recommend an ad blocked, pop-up blocked, and no-script to keep things from loading automatically and tracking what you do.
Report Post »JRook
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 2:51pm@Locked As can you at times. But I assure you I can defend my positions and they are based on rational analysis, not a process whereby I start with ideological answers and back into the facts and the questions. M13 is a clear example of what becomes of unwanted children and why there should be an intelligence test before one can buy a computer or sign up with an ISP.
Report Post »Tombstone
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 3:48pmGhostery is a FREE browser tool available for Firefox, Chrome, Safari, Opera and Internet Explorer. It scans the page for scripts, pixels, and other elements and notifies the user of the companies whose code is present on the page. These page elements aren’t otherwise visible to the user, and often not detailed in the page source code. Ghostery allows users to learn more about these companies and their practices, and block the page elements from loading if the user chooses.
http://www.ghostery.com
Report Post »CougarNick78
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 11:34amWhose friggin business is it of his that he play Big Brother? Mr. 18 year old Limey, once you work, pay taxes, and make your way in the world, then you can complain. Til then, shut your cakehole.
I bet this is his way of telling non-lefties to sit down and shut up.
Yeah, I‘m gonna listen to some kid who’s probably just a few years past the stage of learning to wipe his own butt.
Report Post »Atrum Angelis
Posted on June 27, 2012 at 1:15pmLooking at the link provided in this article, he does work, therefore pays taxes and is making his way in the world. As a web developer. Who taught himself. At 18. What were you doing at 18?
Report Post »And this has nothing to do with telling non-lefties to shut up. It is about telling everyone that what you say on the Internet is open to all unless you take precautions.
Read and research before you open your mouth. “Til then, shut your cakehole.”