The social network amends its privacy policy by taking out a line related to teen users and advertising. November 15, 2013 4:24 PM PST (Credit: Facebook) Facing public pressure, Facebook removed a line from its privacy policy on Friday that related to teen users and advertising. The line was in reference to Facebook's practice of showing a user's public profile picture, comments, and "likes" with ads. Opponents said the language assumed that minors had previously discussed the terms of the site with their parents or guardians, according to The Wall Street Journal. The issue ultimately landed with the Federal Trade Commission in the form of a complaint. Related stories Devs can now add Facebook log-in to Windows apps Snapchat gambles with a promising hand Facebook releases updated Messenger app for iOS, Android Facebook argued that the language was not intended to expand its marketing reach. "We also proposed an update that we thought would help facilitate conversations between teens and their parents about using Facebook," Chief Privacy Officer Erin Egan wrote in a blog post. "Specifically, we added a sentence that said if you are under the age of 18 you have talked to your parent or guardian and they also agree to some of our terms. This language was about getting a conversation started; we were not seeking and would not have gained any additional rights as a result of this addition. We received feedback, though, that the language was confusing and so we removed the sentence."
The social network amends its privacy policy by taking out a line related to teen users and advertising.
Facing public pressure, Facebook removed a line from its privacy policy on Friday that related to teen users and advertising.
The line was in reference to Facebook's practice of showing a user's public profile picture, comments, and "likes" with ads. Opponents said the language assumed that minors had previously discussed the terms of the site with their parents or guardians, according to The Wall Street Journal. The issue ultimately landed with the Federal Trade Commission in the form of a complaint.
Related stories
- Devs can now add Facebook log-in to Windows apps
- Snapchat gambles with a promising hand
- Facebook releases updated Messenger app for iOS, Android
Facebook argued that the language was not intended to expand its marketing reach.
"We also proposed an update that we thought would help facilitate conversations between teens and their parents about using Facebook," Chief Privacy Officer Erin Egan wrote in a blog post. "Specifically, we added a sentence that said if you are under the age of 18 you have talked to your parent or guardian and they also agree to some of our terms. This language was about getting a conversation started; we were not seeking and would not have gained any additional rights as a result of this addition. We received feedback, though, that the language was confusing and so we removed the sentence."
