Meta-Owned Facebook Has No Idea What Happens To User Data, Leaked Document Shows

Facebook is clueless about what happens to user data, a leaked document shows. While regulators in countries around the world are attempting to rein in Meta-owned Facebook for how it handles user data, the company seems to have no idea about what happens to user data and where it goes.

In the leaked document from 2021 obtained by Motherboard, Facebook’s privacy engineers wrote about the process dictating all user data on its platforms. Referring to Facebook as a series of “systems with open borders,” the document explains the situation using an analogy about an ink bottle.

“Imagine you hold a bottle of ink in your hand. This bottle of ink is a mixture of all kinds of user data (3PD, 1PD, SCD, Europe, etc.) You pour that ink into a lake of water (our open data systems; our open culture) … and it flows … everywhere,” the document read. “How do you put that ink back in the bottle? How do you organize it again, such that it only flows to the allowed places in the lake?,” the document reads. For the uninitiated 3PD means third-party data, 1PD refers to first-party data, and SCD stands for sensitive categories data.

Reuters

What happens to our data on Facebook?

The document, written by privacy engineers on Facebook’s Ad and Business Product team is responsible for making “meaningful connections between people and business,” a recent job listing seen by Vice stated. 

What this means is that Facebook is having trouble understanding what happens to user data after it is absorbed into the Facebook ecosystem. This problem is referred to as “data lineage.”

Reuters

Also read: How Hackers Fooled Tech Giants Like Apple, Meta Into Giving Personal Data Of Minors

Currently, regulators in the US, EU, India, and other countries are attempting to exert more control over social media companies like Meta, Twitter, and Google. India’s new IT rules require companies to be more responsive to complaints about content on their platforms.

Reuters

The government can also seek information about the point of origination of any piece of content. As part of these rules, social media companies also need to maintain grievance officers to ensure compliance with these new laws, among many things. 

Also read: Zuckerberg’s Meta Is Now Giving Creators A Chance To Make Money In His Metaverse

The Verge

If you wish to read the complete document, you may click here.

What do you think about Facebook’s acceptance of data chaos? Let us know in the comments below. For more in the world of technology and science, keep reading Indiatimes.com. 

References

Franceschi-Bicchierai, L. (2022, April 26). Facebook Doesn’t Know What It Does With Your Data, Or Where It Goes: Leaked Document. Vice.