Facebook knows a terrifying amount about you

Zuckerberg knows a creepy amount about you.

Facebook has nearly two billion users. If it were a country it would be the biggest on earth 1.39 billion log on everyday.

The social network is mostly free content keeping users engaged for an average on an hour a day. Facebook also own other popular sites such as Messenger, Instagram and Whatsapp. This means that Facebook are able to collect a lot of data on all of its users.

The data is then shared with advertisers - in order to increase the chances of interacting with adverts (and getting more revenue for Facebook) - users are placed in categories that look like this.

Picture: Bridie Pearson-Jones / Facebook

This is only the tip of the iceberg of all the information held by Facebook about me. Yet straight away they can see what my interest, my email platform, what phone I use, what browser I use, my birthday, as well as details of my friends and family.

The predications are based on how you react with other accounts and ads - both on and off the site.

They're based on pages you've liked, status updates, what your friends like and interact with and your career - and this is the data Facebook is making public.

Picture: Bridie Pearson-Jones / Facebook

Legally, Facebook are fine to do this as this is information we give up willingly when using the site.

You can check your ad profile here (click Your Information > Your Categories). You can delete any groups you don't think you fit into - it won't affect the number of adverts you see, but it will make them more random.

It's a reminder to be cautious while using social media, especially if you're concerned about privacy.

HT The Next Web

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