back to article The hits keep coming for Facebook: Web giant made 14m people's private posts public

Facebook is having to douse yet another privacy blaze – as the social network admitted to inadvertently setting some of its addicts' private posts to public, meaning anyone could read them. The web goliath said that about 14 million people were affected by a bug that, for a nine-day span between May 18 and 27, caused profile …

  1. Blockchain commentard

    Is Facebook going to publicly apologise to the affected users or do it privately?

    1. Ken Moorhouse Silver badge

      Is Facebook going to publicly apologise to the affected users or do it privately?

      Looks like your question was prompted by this sentence on the Beeb website:-

      "Users who may have been affected will be notified on the site’s newsfeed. "

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Yeah yeah yeah yeah, but everything is ok - really...

    Why? Because Zuk & Crew apologized. So there, that fixed it - FFS!

    1. This post has been deleted by its author

    2. Mark 85

      Re: Yeah yeah yeah yeah, but everything is ok - really...

      And they'll do it again and again and again. And the apologies will mean as much then as they do now.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        In 2018, its getting harder to see the satire anymore:

        https://www.theonion.com/mark-zuckerberg-promises-that-misuse-of-facebook-user-d-1823988784

        "MENLO PARK, CA—In an effort to demonstrate the social media platform’s total commitment to profits, Mark Zuckerberg took to his personal Facebook page Thursday to promise that the company’s misuse of personal data will, as of now, happen again and again. “We have a responsibility to our users, and if we can’t repeatedly betray your trust and sell your private information to the highest bidder, then we don’t deserve to serve you,”

        "Zuckerberg in his first public statement on the matter, adding that users should feel confident that the social network would do everything in its power to exploit them, through both third-party applications and partnerships with shadowy marketing firms willing to pay any price Facebook asks. “In 2013, a Cambridge University researcher named Alexandr Kogan stole personal data through a personality quiz, and since then, we’ve worked tirelessly to ensure it can be distributed everywhere, for as long as we exist."

        "I invented Facebook, and at the end of the day, I’m solely responsible for what information is regularly released to unknown, unauthorized sources on this platform.” According to reports, Zuckerberg then announced that Facebook would soon be adding new privacy tools to provide users with the false sense that they had any control."

        1. onefang

          Re: In 2018, its getting harder to see the satire anymore:

          "users should feel confident that the social network would do everything in its power to exploit them"

          I know plenty of people that would pay to be "exploited", you see all sorts of "abuse" that people want when you hang out in BSDM social web sites. Though the difference is that in BDSM circles, consent is a number one priority before you "abuse" people.

        2. Doctor Syntax Silver badge
          Facepalm

          Re: In 2018, its getting harder to see the satire anymore:

          It certainly is. See FuzzyWuzzys' post.

        3. MachDiamond Silver badge

          Re: In 2018, its getting harder to see the satire anymore:

          Your tongue in cheek dialogue misses the point that Facebook earns their money by selling personal information. They've cleverly hidden this in their Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy since nobody reads those before checking the "I accept" box to get on with uploading their personal info.

          Facebook does not have a responsibility to protect personal information beyond what is mandated by law and has a long record of changing privacy levels without warning. It's a free service to use in exchange for allowing them to sell your information and market products and services to you based on your activities online (everywhere). It that's a problem for you, don't use them. Pick up the phone and call your mom and friends instead. You could even see if you have a pen that works and send them a card for maximum cred.

      2. Mage Silver badge
        Flame

        Re: they'll do it again and again and again

        Till there is a stake through its heart.

        1. Danny 14

          Re: they'll do it again and again and again

          well an affected EU citizen could file a GDPR complaint vs handling of their data. That should liven up facebooks legal department.

    3. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

      Re: Yeah yeah yeah yeah, but everything is ok - really...

      "Because Zuk & Crew apologized."

      My mother used to say that saying sorry meant you were saying you wouldn't do it again. Their mothers must have told them something different.

      1. BillG
        Paris Hilton

        Re: Yeah yeah yeah yeah, but everything is ok - really...

        My mother used to say that saying sorry meant you were saying you wouldn't do it again.

        Interesting, my grandfather told me that for most people, "I'm sorry" means "Let me do it again".

    4. LucreLout

      Re: Yeah yeah yeah yeah, but everything is ok - really...

      Why? Because Zuk & Crew apologized. So there, that fixed it - FFS!

      In order to be fixed, something must first be broken. Farcebook are unlikely to consider compromising your privacy as something being broken; it's basically the core of their business model.

      Learn about you and sell data driven access to you directly to ad slingers, with occasional bouts of giving away your actual data tossed in for shits & giggles.

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    How many times did stuff like this happen in the past, and just went unnoticed???

    Or was it picked up but Facebook just proceeded to bury it under a carpet!

    Before #Deletefacebook, I caught FB 'undeleting timeline posts' for 10 yrs.

    I even tried reporting it to the ODPC (Irish DPC) aka Helen Dixon in Dublin.

    If its hard for Schrems to get anywhere, you can imagine just how far I got!

    Lite touch regulation is sweet. Is social media Big Tobacco or Big Banking?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Case in point today: Result of the Yahoo Hack...

      So, what did Helen Dixon and her merry band of lite-touch regulators do? They did what paper-pushers do, they wrote a report! That's it! Not even a small fine. Covering up breaches, just the cost of doing business. This is what happens when Irish politicians bend-over for US Tech Giants. GDPR, bring justice:

      https://www.rte.ie/news/2018/0607/968947-yahoo-data-breach/

      1. Danny 14

        Re: Case in point today: Result of the Yahoo Hack...

        GDPR is a little different though. File it in their HQ country.

  4. elDog

    Anybody still have sympathy for those that use fb?

    I've been warning my friends and relatives about this for years.

    "Yeah, we know. But we don't have anything to hide."

    Including all of their friends and enemies data points. Their children's names and schools. Whatever.

    You know, if the titans of commerce were actually made to pay for the damages they caused to other individuals, we would not need any taxes or welfare or anything else.

    Oh, that's assuming the rendered damages would actually go to the harmed parties. Not the legals/lobbyists/critters.

    1. Ole Juul

      Re: Anybody still have sympathy for those that use fb?

      Not a lot. It's been like this from the beginning, but at this point it's more than obvious what's going on. There is one group I definitely don't have any sympathy for though, and that's the ones that think this is OK.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      'We know. But we don't have anything to hide'

      Since March I managed to get most of my family / friends to switch to Signal. They're not abandoning Facebook / WhatsApp / Google altogether. But there is a growing unease that Facebook / Google are that 'BOOT-Stamping-On-A-Human-Face-Forever'....

      1. pɹɐʍoɔ snoɯʎuouɐ

        Re: 'We know. But we don't have anything to hide'

        "Since March I managed to get most of my family / friends to switch to Signal. They're not abandoning Facebook / WhatsApp / Google altogether."

        I have said this before about Signal... yes, its very good, but unless people stop using the usual suspects of social media its just another app taking up space...

        I don't understand why people just forget all the nonsense about security and privacy on facebook and friends. Who cares what privacy setting you use, because as we can see the stuff can be made public at any time. The simple solution is to just assume EVERYTHING you put on the internet, and that includes messages on signal, is public. if you have any worry about it becoming public knowlage, don't put it online ANYWHERE. security is that simple !

    3. Aitor 1

      Re: Anybody still have sympathy for those that use fb?

      Some friends of mine were stupid enough to publish their political tendices quizz on facebook.

      what else can I say?

    4. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Anybody still have sympathy for those that use fb?

      "But we don't have anything to hide" is the automatic first sentence uttered any anyone I have ever tried to discuss the bad side of Facebook, at which point they simply stop listening.

      1. Danny 14

        Re: Anybody still have sympathy for those that use fb?

        luckily even my kids know to use fake personas on the Internet. the amount of info some people put in their public profile is astounding.

      2. MachDiamond Silver badge

        Re: Anybody still have sympathy for those that use fb?

        "But we don't have anything to hide"

        If that's the case, you haven't lived life. I've been drunk at a party before……...

  5. Mr Dogshit

    "chief privacy officer" ?

    1. Ole Juul

      Facebook chief privacy officer

      Chief apologiser officer might be closer.

    2. Roj Blake Silver badge

      Re: "chief privacy officer"

      The person in charge of eliminating privacy, natch.

  6. Mark 85

    One has to wonder..

    what kind of shitstorm brew up when someone's private post to their male/female friend is/was read by their spouse/partner...? But then, manglement apologized so all will be well once more.

    1. I ain't Spartacus Gold badge

      Re: One has to wonder..

      As the Royal Navy toast goes, "To Wives and Sweethearts!"

      "May they never meet."

  7. FuzzyWuzzys
    Facepalm

    "A social media platform isn't just for college, it's for life."

    "I invented Facebook, and at the end of the day, I’m solely responsible for what information is regularly released to unknown, unauthorized sources on this platform.” - Mark Zuckerberg

    Fecking idiot! It's not some tinpot little forum running on a PC in your bedroom. Jesus Mr Z needs grow up, he's still behaving like a spotty little nerd who thinks responsibility is a dirty word. In case you've not noticed Mr Z your little project has exploded to draw in a 1/3 of the planet's population, all sharing their dirty laundry in public, making you and your mates billions and letting you lot carry on behaving like silly 20 somethings who need to learn to grow up and realise what you have created and take proper care of it.

    1. onefang

      Re: "A social media platform isn't just for college, it's for life."

      While your rant is worthy of an upvote, so I gave you one, do you realise the bit you are quoting is not only from a well known satire site, the OP was complaining that it is getting hard to tell the difference between satire and reality?

    2. werdsmith Silver badge

      Re: "A social media platform isn't just for college, it's for life."

      your little project has exploded to draw in a 1/3 of the planet's population

      The lower third.

    3. macjules

      Re: "A social media platform isn't just for college, it's for life."

      Dunno if its the fringe or not, but there is definitely something of the Teletubby about Zuck. I think he might be slowly metamorphosing into Tinky Winky.

  8. tfewster
    Facepalm

    GDPR

    Launching a new feature just before GDPR goes into force? Sure, what could possibly go wrong!

    Let's hope they [did|didn't]* notify the authorities and affected users without delay. The authorities will be looking for a public test case, and Facebook just handed them a beauty.

    * Delete according to preference

    1. Danny 14

      Re: GDPR

      looks like some were done after gdpr was in force.

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    If they only just fixed it then why did it stop on May 27th or why did it take them to the 7th June to highlight the issue?

  10. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Time to change the FB Stock Ticker symbol

    to FiB.

  11. Ken Moorhouse Silver badge

    Facebook strives for transparency

    Step 1: Show users the knives in their backs.

  12. Anonymous Coward
    Thumb Down

    Dear Facebook

    Just a suggestion or two, but I think things will go a lot better for you in future if you slow down a bit on your constant updgrades and

    1. Think carefully about the privacy implactions of new features,

    2. Seriously cut back on the extent of your sharing data with third parties, and

    3. For God's sake test your bloody changes properly before release.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: Dear Facebook

      Seriously cut back on the extent Eliminate all of your sharing data with third parties

      FIFY.

    2. MachDiamond Silver badge

      Re: Dear Facebook

      "2. Seriously cut back on the extent of your sharing data with third parties, and"

      Lose the word "sharing". FB is SELLING data they collect to third parties. Surprise, that's how they make money.

  13. T. F. M. Reader

    "We’d like to apologize for this mistake."

    But we won't.

  14. Chris G

    We Take Our Lusers Privacy very Seri..........

    HaaaHaaaaaHaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa OhmygodIcan'tbreathehaaaaaaaaahaaaaaa

    haaaaaaaaaa

    haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaetc

  15. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    for a nine-day span between May 18 and 27

    Hmm, that date looks familiar for some reason...

    Oh, wait..wasn't May 18th when the Facebook app on some users devices was requesting ROOT?

    https://www.theregister.co.uk/2018/05/18/facebook_android_app_caught_seeking_superuser_clearance/

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: for a nine-day span between May 18 and 27

      It makes it even easier for lower level spooks to read your data if everything is public and the app has root access

  16. Wolfclaw

    Just in time for GDPR time to hit these **!&$%*&!# !!!!! with a 4% fine !

    1. Aqua Marina

      Only if it’s reported and investigated!

      1. Danny 14

        4% if willfully executed with no policy unfortunately.

        Still a 2% fine is a pretty good result.

  17. Richard 1

    Upload your private pics and we'll keep them safe.

    Didn't Facebook recently offer to allow people to upload their private, saucy pictures to prevent them being posted on Facebook? Let's just hope they're more careful with their stash of naughty snaps...

  18. This post has been deleted by its author

  19. Nimby
    Joke

    Take security seriously...

    ...by refusing to use plain text posts on FB. From now on encrypt everything that you write! It's the only way to be safe.

    1. onefang

      Re: Take security seriously...

      Will ROT13 suffice, or do I need something a little bit stronger? ROT14 perhaps?

      1. Androgynous Cow Herd

        Re: Take security seriously...

        ROT13 should be applied twice for best results.

    2. Agamemnon

      Re: Take security seriously...

      I stacked OTR over their chat when. it was XMPP...still do it to Google. Pisses HangOuts right off.

  20. Michael H.F. Wilkinson Silver badge
    Facepalm

    A phrase springs to mind

    "Don't be sorry, be careful!"

  21. Pascal Monett Silver badge

    "at a time when the biz can hardly afford to cast further doubt"

    Really ? FB cannot afford further doubt ?

    Because I'm still waiting for news of the mass exodus and shutting down of accounts that has been promised everywhere and, as long as that hasn't happened, I fail to see what FB is mortally in danger of.

    This is just more of the same ; FB cocks up, nobody moves, the world keeps turning, El Zuck keeps raking in the dough.

  22. fedoraman
    Happy

    Been said before, but

    "We take your privacy, seriously"

  23. N2

    It was my mistake, and I’m sorry.

    Again,

    Throw away, meaningless words if not backed up by correct actions.

    I've not trusted any of this sort since the Internet began and its a policy thats paid off.

  24. Crisp

    I'm sure the ICO are all over it

    And will issue a stiff letter telling them not to do it again.

  25. Electric Panda

    I cannot believe people still use Facebook after all of this. Not only is Facebook itself toxic, the way people use it is toxic.

    Social media has just fuelled narcissism, bullying, depression, you name it. Yet people never stop.

    1. Kaltern

      And you've not even seen half of it, before it's deleted by mods working in the background. I've seen some truly despicable things that thankfully never made it very far.

      Social media exists purely for the benefit of those who want to exploit it for their own gains or agendas. And someone mentioned earlier that it is only used because it is 'free'. Personally I'd like to introduce 'Internet Licenses' as you find for cars.. Of course, people don't WANT Social Media policed, free speech and all that. Many don't realise it is already policed, just in the shadows.

      Maybe we should charge for these licenses, and have a 'Social' test before issuing them.

      Users paying for access to the Internet/Social Media, instead of relying on selling personal data? It'll never happen of course. But people like Zuck should not be allowed to have such a monopoly on data.

  26. WolfFan Silver badge
    Devil

    A modest proposal

    Step 1: get all 14 million victims in one place.

    Step 2: hand each of them a baseball bat.

    Step 3: bring the Zuck to the same place.

    Step 4: allow each victim to hit the Zuck once and only once with the bat.

    Step 5: send a video of the process to Google HQ with a polite note warning of consequences with data breaches. Repeat to the HQ of the bank, insurance company, or other large data-gobbling firm of your choice.

    [Exits, to the sound of my fav Beatle's tune, "Maxwell's Silver Hammer"]

    1. onefang

      Re: A modest proposal

      You only need one baseball bat, the 14 million victims can take turns. Sure the baseball bat might be in bad shape before the first million are done, but I suspect Zuck will be in worse shape by that time.

  27. J27

    Just treat Facebook like it's a giant billboard next to your house. Don't put up anything you don't want written in 10 meter high letters. They've proven they can't be trusted many times.

  28. jelabarre59

    not been there

    We have fixed this issue and starting today we are letting everyone affected know and asking them to review any posts they made during that time,"

    Hmmm, let's see; the flaw happened in May 2018, and I *stopped* visiting Farcebook the end of August 2017. Unless their system is automatically making posts for me (which I wouldn't put past them) I'm OK.

  29. arctic_haze

    Piece of advice

    Do not post on Facebook anything you do not want to be 100% public.

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