Posted by Tim Shoemaker on 07/29/10 11:24 AM   [Newer: July deadliest month in Afghanistan] [Older: So much for transparency...]

Whether you love it, or hate it, Facebook has changed the way people interact, stay in touch with old friends, network, etc... Last week, the company announced they have surpassed 500 million users and Congress has set their cross-hairs on the organization after several highly publicized privacy policy changes.  

Politico reports:

Company executives testified in two separate congressional hearings this week, answering lawmakers' questions about online privacy and the risks posed to consumers who share personal details online.

Both the House and Senate are considering legislation that would place sweeping new rules around how Internet companies are allowed to collect, share and store sensitive information for advertising purposes. Bret Taylor, Facebook's chief technology officer, warned senators Tuesday that imposing vague technological regulations would stifle online innovation.

In April, Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) led a group of senators in demanding that the company implement easier-to-use privacy controls. Schumer also sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission calling for regulators to come up with clear rules for Facebook and other social networks.

Congress is once again wading into something they do not understand and do not belong engaging in.  People join Facebook voluntarily and put whatever information they choose on their profile.  As far as I know, noone has been forced to join Facebook against their will (maybe in extreme cases their friends peer-pressured them into it). 

While I would certainly agree with Sen. Schumer the privacy controls on Facebook should be simpler, this is an issue that should be dealt with between the users and the company, not a third party regulator creating arbitrary guidelines.

Posted 07/29/10 12:11 PM redseib Wetumpka, AL

Facebook, in my opinion, is a dangerous thing. Some friends talked me into opening a Facebook account that I deactivated last December and I’ll never have another account there. Someone had apparently hijacked my name on Facebook and, using my name, sent pornographic messages to other people who had accounts. As a result some of my very close personal friends stopped having any communication with me in any way. That still really hurts me. I learned that the name of at least one more account holder had been hijacked and used to send porn to other account holders. Also, the name of one highly respected gentleman in Huntsville, AL was hijacked and used to send bogus messages to other account holders which claimed that this man and his wife had been robbed in London and needed money in order to return to Huntsville.

Posted 07/29/10 12:56 PM justinb Oklahoma City, OK

Those privacy controls are kind of a pain to use, but that gives an avenue for competition to improve on it. Same day, same story, another bill poking around in an area where it's not needed. That's a rough deal red, it could've been something as simple as a virus or phishing attack. With anything, you have to be mindful, especially with popular sites such as facebook, myspace, and even the fox news site gets viruses through their 3rd party ads.

Posted 07/30/10 09:53 AM RomanRepublic Hicksville, NY

@redeib, If they don't believe that it wasn't you and your name was hijacked then the hell with them anyway. Why would you send it and then deny it? Doesn't make any sense...