1. A simple, educational overview of the Terms of Service that Facebook users agree to.
By Rebecca Sweeny 14279878
2. • Facebook is a social networking site used by over 995 million
people and is the most visited site on the internet! (Facebook
Newsroom, June 2012)
• To sign up to Facebook, these 995 million users had to agree to
the Terms of Service provided by Facebook.
• But did every one of these millions of users read and understand
exactly what they agreed to when they signed up?
NO! like most users, they clicked the „I agree button‟, unaware and
ignorant to the finer details of online behaviour, content ownership,
copyright and privacy issues, leaving users with some unanswered
questions.
3. What can’t I do on Facebook?
• NO bullying, harassing or intimidating other users.
• NO pornographic or nude photos, videos or other material of this
nature.
• NO hate speech or violent, graphic material.
• NO uploading virus or malicious software.
• NO logging in to other peoples accounts or giving away their
login details.
• NO collecting user‟s data through the use of spyware and other
software.
• NO pirated material, this includes posting pirated videos, links to
pirated websites and other posts including methods of how to
obtain such material. (Facebook Community Standards, 2012)
4. What is the point of all these restrictions?
• Safety and the protection of user‟s rights is the main
reason for all these rules.
• Being such a large social network, monitoring and
making sure users abide by these rules is very hard.
• This is why Facebook cannot guarantee the safety of its
users, and relies on people to follow the rules and use
Facebook for what it is intended; friendly communication
and information sharing.
• As Facebook quotes “We respect other peoples rights and
except you to do the same” (Facebook Statement of Rights and
responsibilities, 2012).
• Facebook users are 100% responsible for their actions.
5. What happens if I break these rules?
• If any of these rules are broken, Facebook has the right
to delete your account!
• Facebook can also terminate your account if you
violate any other statements in the Terms of Service as
you have agreed to abide by them.
• If you create any kind of risk or legal exposure to
Facebook, they also have the right to stop providing
some part, or all of it to you (Facebook Statement of Rights
and responsibilities, 2012).
• YOU AGREED, FOLLOW THE RULES
6. Who has ownership over the content and
information I share on Facebook?
• You own all the content and information you post
and share on Facebook.
• You are the owner of all content such as photos,
videos and conversations you post On your page or
another.
• You also have control over how this information is
shared and who can see it.
• However, you don‟t have control over where or how
this information can be reused, sold and distributed
by Facebook. (Facebook Data Use Policy, 2012)
7. Does this mean Facebook can use my
photos and videos?
• YES! When you agree to the Terms of Service you give
Facebook the right to use your intellectual property
such as photos and videos.
• As it quotes in the Terms of Service “Subject to your
privacy and application settings, you grant us a non-
exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-free,
worldwide license to use any IP content that you post
on or in connection with Facebook” (Facebook Statement
of Rights and responsibilities, 2012)
• This means that Facebook can sell or reuse your
public photos and other content, as you have
essentially given them permission to do so.
8. What information & data does Facebook
use and how long does it keep it for ?
• In agreement with the Terms of Service, any information
you share, with your friends or the public, Facebook is
allowed to record, keep and sell it to third parties. (Facebook
Data Use Policy, 2012)
• Data such as, the groups you like and your email contacts
when you use friend finder is stored by Facebook.
• Your name and phone number is also stored when you use
Facebook on a smart phone. Your IP address and you
location is also stored by Facebook when using you PC.
(Facebook Data Use Policy, 2012)
• Even after you delete your account, Facebook and even
search engines like Google have a record of your data. No
one can use Facebook and be anonymous!
9. What kind of Privacy do I have on
Facebook?
• Facebook can be very private or very open,
depending on the users privacy settings.
• Facebook gives users the responsibility and choice
to share information in their own way.
• However, certain information is public even with the
tightest privacy settings.
• Registration information such as your name,
birthday, gender and profile picture always remains
public. (Facebook Privacy Settings, 2012)
10. So, not everyone can see my photos if I
choose the right settings?
• The only picture everyone can see is you profile picture.
• Other photos and albums can be viewed by your
everyone, friends only, selected groups of people, or
just by you!
• Other information such as status updates, profile
information and videos can be made only available to
certain people through privacy settings.
• Users have the choice of Public, Friends and Custom
group settings when posting and sharing content.
(Facebook Privacy Settings, 2012)
11. Can Children use Facebook?
• Yes, children aged 13 – 18 can create and use a Facebook
account.
• However, children below 13 are not permitted to use
Facebook (Facebook Statement of Rights and responsibilities, 2012).
• There are different privacy settings for minors to help ensure their safety. Minors
can only share with friends, and friends of friends, they can not share „publicly‟
with „everyone‟. (Facebook, How Does Privacy Work for Minors, 2012)
• Location service defaults are different. As well. For minors the default is set to
„Off‟, but for adults its default is set to „On‟. If children wish to be located in their
posts, they would have to manually turn the settings on. (Facebook, How Does Privacy
Work for Minors, 2012)
• Anyone who is a convicted sex offender can also not join Facebook. (Facebook
Statement of Rights and responsibilities, 2012).
12. Can I lie about who I am on Facebook?
• No, Facebook requires users to provide their full name, real
birthday and honest, accurate, personal information.
• Users can not create more than one account and if their
account is disabled, they can not create a new one without
permission (Facebook Statement of Rights and responsibilities, 2012).
• Users are to also keep their personal information “accurate
and up to date” (Facebook Statement of Rights and responsibilities,
2012).
• Facebook also encourages users to add and share more
information about themselves such as job history, education,
interests etc. in order to better target advertising.
• Most accounts on Facebook represent real individuals in
some way or another.
13. Do copyright laws still apply on
Facebook?
• YES! Facebook respects copyright laws and encourages it
users to follow them.
• This means that users can NOT upload pictures, videos
and other written or digital materials that they do not own
the copyright to or have permission to use.
• The Facebook logo, like button, and application logo are
exclusive material of Facebook and can only be used with
permission in certain ways.
• Users who wish to use these logos for business,
educational or personal use can do so in a way that is not
“deceptive, harmful, obscene, or otherwise objectionable
to Facebook” (Facebook Brand Permission Centre, 2012).
14. So many rules and privacy concerns!
Should I just not use Facebook at all?
• Definitely not, Facebook has become a key part of our lives
and whilst it does raise some privacy issues it can be fun,
entertaining and a great means of communication.
A few tips for Facebook users:
• Be aware of the terms of service so as to not violate them.
• Understand the responsibly you have over your own
content, actions, behaviour and your privacy settings.
• Actively monitor and adjust privacy settings, so that any
information you do not wish to share is kept private (Privacy
and the Internet, 2008).
• Be selective of what information you put on Facebook too,
do people need to know your address, what bank your with,
the school you went to, or who your dating?
15. References:
Facebook. (2012). Brand Permission Centre . Retrieved from
http://www.facebook.com/brandpermissions/logos.php
Facebook.(2012). Community Standards. Retrieved from
https://www.facebook.com/communitystandards
Facebook. (2012). Data Use Policy. Retrieved from
http://www.facebook.com/legal/terms#!/about/privacy/
Facebook. (2012). How Does Privacy Work for Minors? Retrieved from
http://www.facebook.com/help/?page=214189648617074
Facebook. (2012). Newsroom. Retrieved from
http://newsroom.fb.com/content/default.aspx?NewsAreaId=22
Facebook. (2012). Privacy Settings. Retrieved from
http://www.facebook.com/legal/terms#!/settings/?tab=privacy
Facebook. (2012). Statement of Rights and Responsibilities. Retrieved from
http://www.facebook.com/legal/terms
Goettke, R., & Christiana, J. (2007). Privacy and Online Social Networking Websites.
Retrieved from http://www.eecs.harvard.edu/cs199r/fp/RichJoe.pdf
Unknown. (2008). Privacy and the Internet: Travelling in Cyberspace Safely.
Retrieved from: http://www.privacyrights.org/fs/fs18-cyb.htm
