Concerned About Facebook Privacy? You May Want to Try the New Site ‘Unthink’
- Posted on October 26, 2011 at 2:30pm by
Liz Klimas
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A new social media site says it’s time for a social revolution, an emancipation; that it’s “F-U time.” F-U being Facebook versus Unthink.
Unthink, a new social media site, promises users an experience free from privacy issues.
It began development in secret a few years ago, is a Tampa Bay, Fla., start-up that launched formally this week and is already reported to be at capacity.
Taking Facebook users, who are concerned about how their information is being used and hate endless site redesigns and updates, is Unthink’s ultimate goal. TechCrunch has more:
[...] the majority of Unthink’s message is about what it is not: it’s not another social network, it’s a social revolution. Unthinkers are not users, they’re owners. Unthink is not in control, you are. And so on. It even has its own manifesto, deeds and covenants.
If we want to be free, we have to control our own communications…we have to claim that power,” CEO Natasha Dedis shouted with vitriol to the crowd at September’s Tampa Bay Barcamp (the un-conference), before delving into all the ways that Facebook does its users wrong.
Check out Unthink’s video, which details reasons for creating the site:
TechCrunch says Dedis came up with the idea for Unthink when her son asked to sign up for Facebook and she read its terms of service, which she didn’t agree with “because they could change at any time.”
Watch Tampa Bay‘s local news report about the site’s features and the almost immediate interest generated by those invited to join:
CNET reports that Unthink was founded in 2008 with $2.5 million in funding from DouglasBay Capital. Although Unthink says it won’t use the your information for any sort of commercial gain, to generate revenue, it does have users pick a brand to have on their pages. CNET continues:
Beyond this casual reference to brands and advertising, Unthink’s actual business model is unclear. According to TechCrunch, which first reported about Unthink’s public beta, users who choose not to align themselves with a brand can instead pay a $2 annual fee.
Some sites are skeptical over whether users would actually make freedom and privacy priority enough to join this site over Facebook and if would even come close to rivaling Facebook’s 800 million users.
ReadWriteWeb likens Facebook to the Microsoft Windows in that it’s tolerable to people and they therefore may not change, even if they agreed with it in theory:
In more than 10 years promoting the Linux desktop, I never found more than a small percentage of users who were willing to prioritize freedom over the practicality of using Windows. And it’s not like people love Windows — most folks I’ve talked to tolerate Windows, at best. They may love some of the applications, but for the most part they stuck with Windows simply because it was easier.
Forbes holds a similar sentiment:
It’s impossible to overstate just how important the convenience factor is here. For all-purpose social networking, Facebook has everything most users want and need, including family and friends already signed up who might be reluctant to move.
It seems as if new Facebook privacy concerns or complaints emerge on a weekly basis. The latest stems from a complaint from users outside the U.S. and Canada, where the site is run by subsidiary Facebook Ireland, that Facebook could be maintaining information you delete from your profile.
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Comments (58)
theblessedhope
Posted on October 27, 2011 at 12:26amuse startingpage as browser doesnot keep your IP
Report Post »Jaxco
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 11:27pmok, got on unthink…. finally. read the ‘about’ they are the greenie-eco type idiots. no thanks.
Report Post »Col. HawK
Posted on October 27, 2011 at 12:57amI like it…. LOL…. I‘m sure they’ve never worked a crop in their life…. Hmmmm.
Report Post »jkendal
Posted on October 27, 2011 at 9:28amI’m surprised that people think their information is private on ANY web site. I guess I’m less surprised every day since so many people believe it…..
Report Post »Ruler4You
Posted on October 27, 2011 at 11:37amJust one more org that starts out one way that you can bet your last nickel will end up (before this time next year) being a tool for the establishment. Just like Facebook, google and a long list of others. You can’t believe any one these days.
Report Post »lylejk
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 11:22pmI’m not; refuse to Facebook. lol
:)
Report Post »garyM
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 8:44pmGee so I had some misspellings, maybe I”ll get off with life without parole and not the death penalty. I‘m glad I’m the only person that post on the Blaze that has spelling and grammar errors. Oh Lord it‘s hard to humble when you’re perfect in every way! right Eblaze44 and Brigette I know neither of you ever made a spelling mistake. Probably Harvard grads like Obama LOL
Report Post »TomFerrari
Posted on October 27, 2011 at 8:22amIgnore the spelling complaints.
- Not everyone spells well. It does not make their opinions any less valid.
- Sometimes they are simply typos. Some people don’t notice their typos, others don’t CARE.
- Those who attack you based on spelling, lack actual arguments, I have observed.
- Some people may be doing well just to manage to post anything! Handicapped? Disabled?
Personally, I hold TheBlaze.com‘s writers’ feet to the fire on spelling, but, they are PAID to be PROFESSIONAL WRITERS / JOURNALISTS / CONTRIBUTORS. As such, their spelling DOES reflect on their work, and upon their credibility as journalists.
But, I will defend my fellow Blaze Buddies. We are here to exchange IDEAS and to seek SOLUTIONS, not to critique each other on our spelling skills.
I’ll reiterate: Not everyone spells well. It does not make their opinions any less valid.
Report Post »Exiled
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 8:23pmSo my common sense alarm started going off. Obviously, somebody had to buy the servers and somebody has to pay the power bill. Who? Is some millionaire footing the bill out of good-will? Are people donating? Come on, NOTHING is free. SOMEBODY is paying for this service, even if it’s not me. I’d like to know WHOM before I sign up for anything. Anybody who uses Firefox will tell you that Facebook is completely different when AdBlock is turned on. I haven’t seen an advertisement on Facebook for years.
Report Post »UrbanCombatSurvivor
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 8:34pmYou can make a tremendous amount of money on placed advertising alone on sites like this. There is no need to sell further information if you choose not to.
Report Post »Pontiac
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 11:14pmFirefox + Adblock Plus here also.
But I still don’t use social networking sites.
Every piece of information you post and everything you say can be cached by any third party crawler if you don’t have privacy settings turned on. It can then be sold or published online by any one digging information up on you. There isn’t even a reason to enter your full name when signing up for free email addresses. Unless you’re buying something online with your credit card there is no reason for any website to have your name, DOB, or address.
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Report Post »Speaking of security take The Blaze for example, when you sign up they email you your password plain as day when you join. This is a blatant security flaw. That means your password is stored on their server without any encryption. Any good website will not email your password, if you loose it they will have you create a new one, not send you your known password.
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ZengaPA65
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 7:37pmYeah yeah this will last until enough people are on it then they’ll sell them all out like they always do.
Report Post »webpreacher
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 7:00pmFaceBook uses capitalism to promote their anti-capitalist agenda, how, by promoting the anti-capitalist Dems & Obama Administration, do your Country justice by getting off FaceBook today !
Just imagine the statement all you “Constitutional Patriots” would make if FaceBook should all of a sudden lose 30 million user accounts ? Whats the big deal with facebook anyway, I was never impressed, and I don’t have an account , don‘t need an account and I don’t want one ?
Report Post »godlovinmom
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 7:06pmI don’t have a facebook account either…don’t want one…as far as unthink..nothanks!
Report Post »outrider
Posted on October 30, 2011 at 3:14pmI don‘t get what’s so great about Facebook either. I created an account so I could search for lost friends, but got so bored with all the ads that I haven’t been back. What’s with all those people who use their postings as advertisements for certain products? Aren’t there enough ads in the world without using personal correspondence as ads? Same with all that “like” and “friending” business. And same goes for all that Twitter fanaticism. Who are all these codependent dysfunctional people that can’t conduct their lives without the constant connection to social networking sites?
One last thing I find so hysterical: those Facebookers who create accounts under pseudonyms so they can control who sees their postings. Seems they have a vestigial awareness of the need for privacy after all, but haven’t figured out that they can just opt out of social networking sites and employ regular email for contact with friends. These are some of the same people I see sitting together in a restaurant texting their friend in the next chair rather than just speaking to them directly. Old fashioned conversation is the original social networking. These “social networking” addicts (their word, not mine) should try it sometime.
Report Post »Jim
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 6:54pmUNTHINK is over capacity. Please try again later. STILL.
Report Post »gemmeri
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 5:07pmDon’t they all start out with the best intentions… and then get into financial trouble and then try to bail themselves out by selling private info? Nothing is for nothing and free doesn’t work when you have overhead. Advertising only pays for so much… or maybe it does pay and they start double-dipping. All I know is anytime you type anything online the info is at risk. I don’t do Facebook. I know people who do… And it seems to suck the life out of them, they have nothing else. Don’t ask me about Twitter. Every time I see a headline where some celebrity tweeted something scandalous it makes me want to gag. I used to try and chat… but the chat rooms became disgusting with what I call disrupters with nothing to say and way too many emoticons for me. By the way, the spacebar is the big one in the bottom middle of the keyboard for all you juvenile idiots out there. I like intelligent conversation and witty remarks, not gross or inappropriate comments. Just because you are not face to face with someone doesn‘t mean you can’t get a measure of their character… or lack thereof. Good luck with UnThink. It all sounds so very interesting… but I will only continue to post my comments here where I can sound off on current issues. And it seems there are oh so many to sound off about. While I believe Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity and the rest of the conservative radio talkers are trying to get a message out, they still make more money than normal people. Go
Report Post »America Bless God
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 5:04pmI shut my Facebook page down a couple of years ago when someone called me traitor for me calling Obama a Muslim Terrorist. Thank God I only made a few comments! They won’t even let me erase the account, it can only be deactivated. Google and Facebook are traitors to our Republic and should be dealt with as such when we take back the White House.
I hate to be negative, but how soon before the new Net Neutrality rules, Facebook and Google run to Obama and have Unthink shut down?
Report Post »mcjj
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 4:54pmbummer…. still over capacity. Will keep trying back.
Report Post »SavingtheRepublic.com
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 4:05pmI dont personally use facebook. I use it for STR.http://alturl.com/3afuv to deliver more info and connect people. I think people are putting too much of their life online for others to have access to. You open the door for stalkers, identity thieves and for the criminal dolts an easy way for cops to find you!!
By all means have an account but keep the confidential info confidential. Its a great tool to network and meet up with new and old friends, look for work (not that anyone is hiring). Better question to ask is WHY facebook is so intrusive and willing to take & share info of a private citizen that another site must be born as an alternative. Why does FB feel the need to “own” ones personal digital property? Where is the gain, what could the info possibly do for them how do they benefit that a Uthink has to be created as a “safe” alternative!?
Report Post »Jim
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 3:32pmUNTHINK is over capacity. Please try again later. OOOPS!
Report Post »Jim
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 3:31pmUNTHINK is over capacity. Please try again later.
Report Post »columbus_tony
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 3:16pmWelp, they broke the first rule of the Web. “Be able to handle capacity at ”go-live”. Didn’t they watch Social Network? lol
Report Post »Carlinpa
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 3:15pmWow another glaring example of why FREE Market Capitalism is the BEST system in the world!!.. this site gains success by offering people what they want and more importantly what they do NOT want. If we didn’t have the free market we would all be wearing “ eveeeninggg veaaarr” that look just like “svwimm vearrr” like that commercials in the 80′s
Report Post »Eliasim
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 3:27pmHaha. And then they would all feel like mourlning veaaar.
Report Post »peterpiper
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 3:11pmIf it is what they make it appear to be, I think we should all support it. If for nothing else to get the message out there that there is a large segment of society that want to have choices when it comes to our right to privacy.
Report Post »@leftfighter
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 3:08pmPet peeve:
If this company was based in Tampa Bay, you’d need a submarine to get there.
The city is Tampa, not Tampa Bay. Just like San Francisco is San Francisco, not San Francisco Bay.
People are from Tampa, St. Petersburg, Largo, Clearwater, Lakeland, Bradenton, etc. Fish are from Tampa Bay.
If people were from Tampa Bay they’d have gills.
Green Bay people? They really *are* fish. That city really *is* Green Bay.
Report Post »capt4503
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 3:21pmwhy do they have a football team called the “Tampa Bay Buccaneers)? are they really a water polo team?
Report Post »Will4Freedom
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 3:26pmI have to laugh at that one. Something most people don’t think about. How true.
Report Post »Starstruck
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 3:44pmTampa Bay is the name we call it here in south Florida, sorry yankee
Report Post »Eblaze44
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 4:26pmWell, everyone IS entitled to their pet peeves. Unfortunately that area is often referred to as the “Tampa Bay”. simply do a small Google search and there are lots of Tampa Bay sites – and I doubt if any of them are “in the water”.
Report Post »Birgitte
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 4:40pmIt would be nice if San Francisco was under the waters of the Bay. Just Sayin’
Report Post »endgamer
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 4:51pmI live here in the Tampa Bay Area.. There are 9 counties or so in the Tampa Bay area and the City of Tampa is part of that. San Francisco refers it to “ The Bay Area” Not nitpicking here but it isn’t a big deal.. The New York Giants and Jets play in New Jersey, Some complain but it stays the same.. Get over it.
Report Post »Todd P
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 5:20pmSpeaking as someone who lives in “Tampa Bay”, permit me to clarify. The term “Tampa Bay” refers to the entire area around Tampa Bay, including St. Petersburg, Largo, Clearwater, Tampa, Brandon, Apollo Beach, Bradenton, etc. Tampa is a city on Tampa Bay (the water), but the Tampa Bay (the area) includes Tampa – and many other cities as well. Hope that helps!
Report Post »garyM
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 3:06pmFacebook will reap what they sewed in the end, Mark Z had a good thing and blew it. I predict FB will lose millions of users quick over the Obama type thinking and by the way Mark Z is a big Obama supporter, that’s enough to make anyone leave FB. I deactivated my Fb account a few months ago. I know they still got all my info, the sorry bas__-rds!
Report Post »Eblaze44
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 4:28pmIt’s hard to reap anything that is all sewed up, but if you sow seeds, scatter them around, you just might reap something at the end of the growing season.
Report Post »Birgitte
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 4:44pmI agree with Eblaze, what happened to learning how to spell? Even the writers here can’t seem to spell headlines half the time. Proofread your posts people. Geez…. Eye caint seem to be good at spellen stuff. Gess Ime ignerent.
Report Post »realjohn
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 10:49pmZuk is a pretender like Gates and Jobs
Report Post »Couldn’t get it on his own so enter
the twin brothers who trusted him and his
CFO All three got burned.
Napster got paid for revenge
Lantern
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 3:00pmIf I can create an account on unthink, FB is history to me.
Report Post »PossumRoadkill
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 2:59pmI read more about it here…..http://techcrunch.com/2011/10/25/anti-facebook-social-network-unthink-launches-to-public/ There are screen shots of the pages that shows that it looks much different than Facebook. I will be checking it out. Very tired of Facebook. Joined Google+ and found it to be little more than a Facebook act like. Great article Blaze Staff !
Report Post »staggerlee32
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 9:44pmGoogle has been in bed with the NSA for years now
Report Post »sackoman
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 2:58pmIt’s really just Facebook SCREWING with you even more!!! WE ARE ROBOTS!!!!
Report Post »MUSE_FENDERTAMA
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 3:19pmParanoid much?
Report Post »don’t suppose things without evidence. Even good conspiracy theorists try to rustle up some evidence.
Wringeaux
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 2:52pmI love ‘unthink’, you can do a lot with this:
“UNTHINK is over capacity. Please try again later.”
Report Post »NOBALONEY
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 2:39pmCapitalism engine is competition! Good Luck UNTHINK!
Report Post »CatB
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 2:45pmI just posted a link to this article on Facebook! Let’s get the word out!
Report Post »NJTMATO
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 3:41pm@ CATB….gotcha!!! Have this article all ready to post to my FB….will love to be an UNTHINKER for a change :-) Will support them! Capitalism at it’s finest!!!!
Report Post »sister1_rm
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 2:36pmI can’t seem to get it. What’s it take to get on to their webpage?
Report Post »Timothy_Reid
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 2:46pmProbably a couple more days or consistent refreshing. This being day one it will more than likely be pretty busy for a few days.
Report Post »CatB
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 2:48pmIt’s over capacity ..try back later … Glenn scores again? Looks like a lot of people would like an alternative to Facebook . . me included. Will try again “later”.
Report Post »sister1_rm
Posted on October 26, 2011 at 3:22pmI just e-mailed them asking for a priority code, so maybe I can get in tomorrow.
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