On http://www.takethislollipop.com/ there is a nice little movie that shows you what the implications of enabling a facebook app could be in a way that is hard to ignore.
I sent the link to my s.o. and a bunch of friends and extended family and the responses I’m getting are interesting to put it mildly.
Of course being the messenger is a pretty sure way to get shot at but it certainly seems that this video is a way to break the ice and get people to think a bit more about their online privacy.
One of the most interesting exchanges on this subject today was this:
“But I unchecked all the boxes, I’m safe”
“yes, you unchecked all the boxes - the ones that were there so, you have to wonder which choices you were not given” the boxes that you can’t uncheck”
Facebook has done a pretty good job of convincing users they have control over their privacy. But in the end ‘opt-out’ of a limited set of features is not the same as showing the users exactly what remains. It’s like allowing you to remove the penguins and the zebras from the room but keeping the elephants.
If you haven’t seen the movie above, I urge you to go and do so, really, you want that lollipop.
Trust me on it.