Facebook Changes Infuriate Thousands of Users

Earlier this week, users of the online hangout Facebook were greeted by changes to the system that didn’t make them happy. The operators of the site implemented a new feature that will deliver automated, customized alerts to a user’s closest friends, classmates, and colleagues whenever that user makes changes to their profile. For instance, a user might log on and immediately find out that someone they know has posted new photos, joined another social group, added a new friend to their contact list, or begun dating someone new. The feature, known as News Feeds, caused an immediate backlash of protests and outrage among thousands of Facebook users, with some even threatening to boycott the site.

To join the site, a person must already belong to an existing network, such as a college, high school, or certain organizations and companies. As a result of its strict membership requirements, the site has fewer than 10 million registered users, compared with the over 100 million users at the more widely known MySpace. A user’s profile details such as hobbies, relationship status, and contact information are usually kept secret from other people on the site, even other users designated as friends. For example, a user can specify that friends and classmates can view their photos, but their co-workers cannot. But the News Feeds feature has completely changed the control a user has over keeping things private.

One University of California student said that the News Feeds make it much easier for people who want to stalk other users to find out personal details that they otherwise wouldn’t be privy to. Igor Hiller, 17, said that Facebook users "really think Facebook is becoming the Big Brother of the Internet, recording every single move."

More than 600,000 Facebook members have joined a protest group created on the site, called Students Against Facebook News Feeds. More than 80,000 people have electronically endorsed a petition opposing the new feature, and a Web journal was set up calling for users to boycott the site.

All of the information delivered by the News Feeds had always been available to users, but they had to search the site to discover it. A person had to visit a friend’s profile page and read it to see if changes had been made. The News Feeds, however, automatically now announce any changes to a user’s friends, classmates, and colleagues. Facebook has long prided itself on privacy, so the new changes came as a shock to most site members.

Facebook’s chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, posted a personal message on the site Thursday saying that the site’s operators remain committed to privacy, and they intended the new feature to be helpful, not offensive. "We really messed this one up," Zuckerberg’s open letter says. "When we launched News Feed and Mini-Feed we were trying to provide you with a stream of information about your social world. Instead, we did a bad job of explaining what the new features were and an even worse job of giving you control of them. I'd like to try to correct those errors now."

Zuckerberg says that the News Feeds did not incorporate the proper privacy controls right away, and the company is working to change things. "This was a big mistake on our part, and I’m sorry for it," Zuckerberg says. "But apologizing isn’t enough. I wanted to make sure we did something about it, and quickly. So we have been coding nonstop for two days to get you better privacy controls." The safeguards are expected as early as Friday.