Facebook is one of the most popular social media platforms in the world, with over 2 billion active monthly users as of 2023. The Facebook mobile app in particular is hugely popular, with over 1 billion downloads on Android alone. However, despite its widespread use, there are some secrets about the Facebook app that many users may not be aware of.
Does Facebook Listen to Conversations?
One of the most common rumors about Facebook is that it listens to user conversations through your phone’s microphone in order to target ads. This theory has circulated for years, with many users reporting seeing ads for products they had recently discussed out loud without searching for them online.
Facebook has repeatedly denied that it listens to user conversations, stating that its ad targeting is based solely on information users share on Facebook as well as browsing history and other online activity. However, some security researchers have demonstrated that it is possible for apps to access your microphone without indication on your phone.
Overall, there is no definitive proof that Facebook does listen to conversations, but the app certainly has the capability if it wanted to. Users uncomfortable with this possibility can disable microphone access for the Facebook app in their phone settings.
It Tracks Your Location
Facebook definitely uses your location data to target ads and customize your News Feed. The Facebook app prompts users to enable location services when first installed, and this data can be accessed even when the app is running in the background. Location data is also inferenced based on your device’s IP address.
You can limit Facebook’s access to your location by adjusting your device settings. On iOS, go to Settings > Privacy > Location Services > Facebook. On Android, go to Settings > Apps & Notifications > Advanced > App Permissions > Location.
However, disabling location tracking may limit certain features of the app. Facebook uses location for purposes like location tagging, customized ads, event recommendations, and more.
It Follows You on Other Websites
Through Facebook Business Tools such as the Facebook pixel, the company can track your activity across websites and apps, even when you’re not logged into Facebook. The Facebook pixel allows businesses to install a piece of code on their website that sends data back to Facebook about which pages you visit, items you add to cart, and more.
This data is used by Facebook to measure ad performance for businesses and enhance its ad targeting algorithm. It means Facebook can serve you ads related to products you viewed on another website but didn’t purchase.
You can limit off-Facebook activity tracking through your Advertising Preferences on Facebook. Go to Settings & Privacy > Ads > Ad Settings > Advertisers and Businesses > Your Information > Your Categories. However, many businesses use the Facebook pixel so you’ll still encounter it across the internet.
It Can Read Your Camera Roll
Facebook’s app permissions allow it to access your device’s camera roll. This allows features like easy photo uploading from your camera roll. However, it also means Facebook may have access to your entire library of photos unless you manually disable the feature.
On iOS, you can disable camera roll access by going to Settings > Facebook > Photos. On Android, go to Settings > Apps & Notifications > Advanced > App Permissions > Photos.
Restricting access to your camera roll will prevent uploading photos directly from your camera roll. You’ll have to use the in-app camera or download photos individually to upload them.
It May Drain Your Battery
Studies have shown the Facebook app consumes a significant amount of battery life compared to other social media apps. This is likely because it runs constantly in the background to sync new messages, notifications, etc. Location tracking in the background is another major battery drain.
To preserve battery life, turn off Background App Refresh for Facebook on iOS. On Android, restrict Facebook’s ability to run in the background through Settings > Apps & Notifications > Facebook > Advanced > Battery.
However, this could mean you don’t receive notifications in a timely manner when the app is closed. There is a trade-off between battery life and real-time notifications.
It May Impact Your Mental Health
Research has indicated use of social media apps like Facebook can negatively impact mental health and well-being, especially in young adults. The constant comparisons,validation-seeking, arguments in comments, and exposure to “highlight reels” from others’ lives can foster negative emotions.
If you feel Facebook is negatively impacting your mood or self-esteem, consider taking a temporary break from the app, limiting your use to 30 minutes a day, turning off notifications, unfollowing accounts that trigger envy, or even fully deactivating your account.
Mental health experts also recommend replacing passive scrolling with more positive uses like interacting with real-life friends and family. Be conscious of how the app makes you feel.
It Facilitates Spread of Misinformation
Facebook’s algorithmprioritizes posts that get high engagement, which often includes controversial, false, or misleading information. While Facebook has rules against sharing false news, misinformation still spreads rapidly on the platform.
When reading news on Facebook, always check the original source and read beyond just the headline before sharing. Seek out reputable fact-checking sites to verify viral claims and be skeptical of emotional posts designed to provoke outrage.
Also be cautious of sponsored posts – these ads are designed to look like regular posts and may promote dubious products or political misinformation. Verify the accuracy of Pages you choose to follow.
It Can Reactivate Without Your Knowledge
If you choose to deactivate your Facebook account, be aware the company may reactivate it without your consent. According to California laws, any company can legally reactivate an account marked “inactive” after 30 days.
To prevent this, select “permanently delete account” when deactivating your profile. Even after permanent deletion, Facebook can take up to 90 days to fully delete all records from its servers. Your information may still be accessed in this time.
Also be cautious of logging back into Facebook during your deactivation period. Even just logging in and back out immediately can reactivate your account.
It Can Track Your App Usage
The Facebook app has the ability to track your usage of other apps on your device through an opt-in App Events feature. This allows Facebook to log whenever you open up apps like Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, and more.
While Facebook claims this is to help improve their products and ad targeting, it has raised privacy concerns about how deeply Facebook can monitor your full device usage. You can toggle App Events off through Settings.
It May Slow Down Your Phone
With over 100MB in size and constantly running processes in the background for notifications and location tracking, Facebook’s app requires a lot of storage space and RAM to run smoothly. This can noticeably slow down performance on older phones or phones with limited storage.
Try closing background processes for Facebook in your phone’s app settings. Limiting location access, notifications, and auto-playing videos can also help minimize sluggishness. Periodically clearing the app’s cache and data can free up storage space too.
It Can Crash Frequently on iPhones
iPhone users frequently report the Facebook app crashing repeatedly, particularly on iOS 13 and 14. This seems tied to issues between Facebook’s coding and Apple’s operating system, with no clear solution.
Updating to the latest iOS and Facebook app versions may alleviate some problems. Beyond that, try rebooting your phone, reinstalling the Facebook app, logging out and back in, or deleting and readding your account if crashes persist.
It May Gather Data Even If You Don’t Have an Account
Shadow profiles allow Facebook to compile data on non-users via information provided by friends, page visits with Facebook Pixel, and contacts uploaded by users. While Facebook claims it only uses this data in aggregated, anonymous form, shadow profiles still raise privacy concerns.
To minimize data gathering as a non-user, install browser extensions that block Facebook’s trackers, don’t visit Facebook directly, ask friends not to tag you, and request friends with your info as a contact to delete it. However, with over 2 billion users, avoiding all Facebook data collection is extremely difficult.
It Forces New Features Without User Consent
Facebook has a long history of redesigning features and forcing users into new interfaces without warning or the ability to opt-out. Changes like the See First news feed, mandatory Messenger integration, reactions, live streaming, and algorithmic feeds have introduced drastic changes users had no choice but to adopt.
While this allows Facebook to push new initiatives faster, it removes user control. The only way to avoid forced interface changes is to deactivate your account and stop using Facebook entirely when you dislike updates.
It Owns Your Photos and Data
Facebook’s terms state that by posting content to Facebook, you grant the company a broad, irrevocable license to reuse, modify, distribute, and publish that content worldwide. Essentially, any photos, videos, or data you post becomes usable by Facebook for any purpose.
While Facebook claims legal ownership, you can still delete content you’ve posted at any time to stop its spread. However, deleted content may remain on Facebook’s servers and be retained for backups and legal compliance.
It Experiments on Users Without Consent
Facebook has conducted secret psychological experiments on users, such as manipulating News Feeds to control users’ emotions. While common for websites, doing so absent user consent raised ethical concerns about manipulation.
Facebook also routinely tests experimental features, interfaces, and algorithms on segments of its user base without warning. The only way to avoid potential experiments is avoiding the Facebook platform entirely.
It Face-Matches Users Without Consent
Facebook’s DeepFace facial recognition system uses AI to match user profile photos to those uploaded by others, enabling auto-tagging. However, this activated without explicit opt-in consent and could be used for surveillance.
You can turn off facial recognition in Privacy Settings. However, Facebook may still extract facial data from photos and videos to improve the AI – it just won’t group similar faces together.
It Can Activate Your Camera Secretly
A bug discovered in early 2020 allowed the iOS Facebook app to briefly access phone cameras in the background without a user’s knowledge. While likely unintended, it demonstrates the broad device permissions granted to Facebook.
Restrict camera access for the Facebook app in your phone’s settings. On iOS, toggle off camera access in Settings > Facebook. On Android, deny Camera permission in App Settings > Facebook > Permissions.
However, this may prevent taking and uploading photos within the app. Leaving camera access off except when needed to upload photos increases privacy.
It May Have Collected Kids’ Data Illegally
Despite prohibiting children under 13 on its platform, leaked documents revealed Facebook was aware it had likely collected data on millions of children illegally via its Messenger Kids app and child-targeted ads.
While collecting some data from children is legal with parental consent, Facebook had no system to verify if users were underage. Facebook has since agreed to increased oversight to settle FTC charges.
Parents should be cautious of kids under 13 using Facebook apps and limit sharing of children’s information and photos if allowing use. Activating parent controls and supervision tools can also help protect kids’ privacy.
It Logs Deleted Messages and Posts
When you delete a message or post on Facebook, it may still be archived on Facebook’s servers for a period of 90 days. This allows recovery if you change your mind, but also means sensitive information is still stored after deleting.
Truly sensitive content is better not posted at all. Avoid sharing anything you would not want potentially accessed, leaked, or subpoenaed down the line before it’s fully deleted from logs.
It May Skip Apple’s App Tracking Rules
Apple introduced App Tracking Transparency rules in 2021 requiring apps to explicitly ask users for permission before tracking them cross-app for ads. However, Facebook allegedly plotted ways to use device fingerprinting and first-party data to bypass having to ask for user consent.
To protect your privacy as much as possible, deny App Tracking permission prompts from Facebook. Limit ad tracking and sharing of your information with third parties through Facebook’s settings and your device settings.
It Reserves Rights to Your Content Even After Deletion
Even when you delete your Facebook account, Facebook’s terms grant it a perpetual license to retain, use, and license all content you’ve ever shared on its platform. This allows it to continue benefitting from data you wanted deleted.
Be extremely cautious what you post, even on “private” accounts, as deleting the account will not delete what’s already been shared or copied from Facebook’s servers. Do not share anything on social media you may want permanently erased.
Conclusion
In summary, while Facebook offers convenience in connecting with friends and family, users should be extremely cautious in what they share and disclose on the platform due to its broad data collection, tracking capabilities, and exploitation of user content. Limiting app permissions, disabling unused features, being selective about what is shared, and periodically deleting old posts and accounts are some best practices.
Maintaining awareness around Facebook’s data policies, defaults, and capabilities allows users to make informed decisions about their privacy versus convenience trade-offs when using the app.