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You give away a lot when on Facebook

Last Updated 23 March 2018, 13:40 IST

Facebook is in the eye of a storm after news broke of how consultancy firm Cambridge Analytica mined user data to influence elections in the US and other countries.

On Friday, Facebook said it would enhance security features ahead of the 2019 elections in India.

Nikhil Pahwa, founder of Medianama and co-founder of Internet Freedom Foundation, explains the concerns.

"CA was manipulating voting patterns during the US elections with targeted messaging based on people's behavioural patterns. An example would be how African-Americans were sent messages saying they could just vote through a website. The fact was, these votes were not counted," he says.

Anand Venkatanarayanan, senior engineer, NetApp, says the way mined data is used is disconcerting.

"Imagine you shared a picture of a particular God on your profile, checked in to Varanasi and put up posts promoting vegetarianism. The data is analysed and used to target you in a way that appeals to you," he says.

In any election, a large chunk of the voting population is neither here nor there. Data can be used to swing their votes or convince them to stay home on election day.

"This can be done by spreading messages that all candidates are corrupt and no one is worth voting for," he says.

Indians are not aware of the dangers of sharing personal information on social media. "Given the recent data leaks, they should be more prudent," says Tinu Cherian, social media evangelist.

Sharing information about when you are going out of town is an invitation for theft or fraudulent financial transactions in your name. "Your child's name, photos and school details, when shared publicly, are enough to put them at risk of kidnap," he says. But the current concerns are political rather than personal.

Asked about the#DeleteFacebook campaign, Pranesh Prakash, policy director, Centre for Internet and Society, says, "I don't use Facebook and I think that the kind of business model that it runs on is harmful. We need alternatives that are decentralised."

So what can one do? Delete Facebook, say Pahwa and Venkatanarayanan.

"That will not be easy though. We are not a very privacy conscious society. I have not even been able to get my wife to exit Facebook," says Venkatanarayanan.

He recommends restricting the use of third-party apps. Cherian notes, "If you really want to share, put the right privacy settings in place. Share in a restricted circle that only includes your relatives or close friends."

Behind your screen

Your preferences and comments are tracked.

The data is used to tailor messages to your taste.

Your opinion is swayed in favour of a party or candidate.

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(Published 23 March 2018, 13:40 IST)

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