How to protect personal information from third-party apps on Facebook
In the wake of Facebook's ongoing controversy regarding data privacy and security, it has become imperative that users take it upon themselves to protect personal information from third-party apps on the platform. Let's take a look at how the social network's privacy settings can be waded through to ensure that only the people you want have access to your information. Here are the details.
Facebook's lax policy let data firm collect 50mn users' information
The urgent need for protecting data on Facebook arose after it came to light that data analytics firm Cambridge Analytica obtained user data of 50 million people from Facebook without their permission to allegedly manipulate their votes ahead of the 2016 US presidential elections. Facebook faced criticism over its lax terms of service that let developers collect information like contacts, photos, and posts.
Zuckerberg answerable to the government
To that end, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has also been summoned by a parliamentary committee to provide evidence about the extent of data used by Cambridge Analytica. Notably, his net worth dropped by around $6 billion in just one day due to the controversy. The company has since changed its terms of service to limit the information third parties can collect.
Here's how you can take control of your privacy settings
Go to Facebook > Settings Menu > Apps. There, click the Edit button under the 'Apps, Websites and Plugins' panel. Click 'Disable Platform.' This will disable all platform apps connected to Facebook and you won't be able to log into any website using the Facebook Login feature. This includes the likes of Twitter and Spotify, and one-off quizzes like the one Cambridge Analytica floated.
Limit the personal information accessible to third-party apps
An alternative to disabling the entire thing is to limit the personal information accessible by apps. To do that, click Edit under 'Apps Others Use' from the same Apps Settings page. Now individually uncheck all the information you don't want others' apps to access. However, this doesn't mean that the information is deleted from the developers' servers.
