Schmidt: Facebook Should Open Up Its Data To Google

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Schmidt: Facebook Should Open Up Its Data To Google [tech.fortune.cnn.com]

"The best thing that would happen is for Facebook to open up its data," Mr. Schmidt said. "Failing that, there are other ways to get that information." He declined to be specific.

Isn't that an interesting statement!

Time to go and double check the privacy settings in FB

[CainIV]

Unreal that they would make that statement, although the numbing felt by the lack 5 examples of blatant disregarding of privacy dull the pain for most of us.

Hopefully Bing can pick up the ball where Google clearly dropped off, since nothing truly innovative has come from that camp in quite some time.

[rushglen]

This site a parody of facebook, (openbook) is pretty neat - it allows you to search all facebook updates - just try "My new number"

some of the stuff you can find there is amazing - people generally have no idea how the web works and in particular how facebook privacy settings work.

[youropenbook.org...]

although they claim no connection with facebook this is their headline:

Facebook helps you connect and share with the people in your life. Whether you want to or not.

# What is Openbook?

Openbook lets you search public Facebook updates using Facebook's own search service.

Facebook's bait-and-switch on privacy and their overly complex settings cause many users to post messages intended for their friends to 'everybody'.

That's the entire planet, for all time. This privacy-malfunction could have serious consequences if you're looking for a job, applying for college, or trying to get medical insurance.

[Rosalind]

Facebook is a massive exercise in data mining. Put it together with Google's information and the Gorg will be telling us what we want to search for, buy, read, watch, do, and everything else in between.

[StoutFiles]

Everyone needs to stop freaking out about all the data Google has.

So they know what you like/don't like? Your friends? Whoop-de-doo. All this will do is show ads more tailored to you. There isn't anything "evil" they can do with this information, it just weeds out ads that you would otherwise ignore.

If there is any information they have that you don't want everyone to know, just don't post it online! Treat all sites like there are zero privacy settings, and anything you may post will eventually be released to the world, because that's what's happening.

[jimbeetle]

Microsoft has almost half a billion bucks invested in Facebook.

Facebook and Yahoo's social stuff have become more tightly integrated over the past few months.

Microsoft's Bing now powers both FB and Y! search.

And a day before Schmidt said that FB's data should be open to G it was reported [kara.allthingsd.com] that FB and MSFT are in talks to strengthen their relationship.

Has the good doctor never heard of a "snowball's chance?"

[anshul]

They mean to send all the robots over Facebook and over Facebook's partners?
What actually they will do with Facebook data?
To use it in Google Me or in advertising platforms?
They can't burst directly in social/gaming networking and get the similar/same data from it itself?

May be Schmidt is trying to say Google is Google.

[Reno]

If there is any information they have that you don't want everyone to know, just don't post it online

If that's all there was to it, that might be the answer. But they also know where you surf, they know how frequently you visit various types of sites, they have the $$ and computer power to pull data about you from dozens or hundreds or thousands of distinct sources, combine that data, analyze that data, and then resell it to whomever wants to buy it. If that's not troubling, then God help us all.

........................

[dstiles]

I wonder what a UK Freedom of Information request under the Data Protection Act would result in? :)

I'm pretty sure google knows exactly who "I" am (ie me and my wife) because we are registered with WMT (so easy to find personal and company names from web sites), have domains registered under company and personal names using our company domain for email, and have a fixed IP. They have a pic of our house (address available through one of our web sites) and my wife is on the &^%%($ streetview, though unlikely to be recognised from it and not in our neighbourhood. Should also be fairly easy to track me down to this posting. :)