Saving Facebook

Can it be done?

Facebook, the social networking Internet site everyone loves, is losing some of the love that made it a success thanks to its new privacy policies. When Facebook went public in 200, default privacy settings were established to keep private any personal information out of the hands of people who were not users' "friends." Now more people can see the information of any Facebook user, whether those people are registered friends of the user or not. Friends might see your name in a Facebook ad, and data from your profiel could end up on "partner sites" like Yelp, Microsoft, Pandora, or similar sites. Facebook executives decided on new privacy standards in a big meeting on Thursday (May 13), and even though Facebook founder Marc Zuckerberg says that the privacy of Facebook's users is a top priority, not everyone is convinced. People are fleeing Facebook like vampires from crosses.

This is not good for me, as I am a regular Facebook user and appreciate the ability to reach out to people that it's given me. I also met several people through Facebook that I would never have met elsewhere. I also use Facebook to promote my writing; chances are you're reading this because you followed the link I left on Facebook. I have no thought of leaving, but several of my friends might consider doing so. That wouldn't be cool. Understandable, yes. Cool, no.

So, if you want to stay on Facebook and keep your private information private, rather tha nlet it fall into the hands of advertisers and other Internet services, here's what to do:

On the upper right-hand corner of your screen, click Account\>Privacy Settings\>Personal Information and Posts. Make sure you adjust your privacy settings next to all nine categories on the page. Then click Back to Privacy\> Contact Information. Make sure you adjust your privacy settings next to all eight categories on the page.

To ensure that friends don't see your name when they view Facebook ads, go to the upper right-hand corner of your screen. Click Account\>Account Settings\>Facebook ads. Select " No one" beside the section that reads "Allow ads on platform pages to show my information to & Show my social actions in Facebook ads to."

Finally, to make sure that you're not enrolled in a program that gives Web sites such as Microsoft, Yelp, and Pandora (I don't even know what Yelp and Pandora are!) access to your information, go to the upper right-hand corner of your screen. Click "Edit Setting" beside Instant Personalization Pilot Program. Then, uncheck the box at the bottom of the screen.

If you have any questions, find me on Facebook. I'll be there. :-)