Key features and related issues of the terms of use of Facebook.

1. Facebook
Policy Primer
Key features and related
issues of the terms of use
of Facebook.
BySophie Galati

2. What is Facebook?
 A free social networking service.
 Where you can create your own personal
profile.
 Allows you to easily interact with friends and
family online.
 Used for sharing content, posting
status’, instant messaging.

3. Facebook users must agree to
certain terms of use.

4. Did you read the terms of use of
Facebook when you joined?

5. Did you read the terms of use of
Facebook when you joined?
It’s likely that you didn’t.
The majority of Internet users admit to not reading
the terms of use of online platforms or services,
simply because they are boring or difficult to
understand (Smithers, 2011).

6. This presentation will summarise the key
features of Facebook’s terms of use and the
concerns that they raise.
 These concerns relate to Internet politics and
power and include:
 Ownership of Content
 Privacy
 Surveillance
 Censorship
 Freedom of Expression

7. A significant concept discussed within Facebook’s
terms of use is the:
Ownership of Content

8.  When you upload content to Facebook, it
becomes Facebook’s property.
 It is their property until you have deleted
it.

9.  When you upload content to Facebook, it
becomes Facebook’s property.
 It is their property until you have deleted
it.
 Unless, of course, your friend also has a
copy of the content.

11. What exactly does
“…transferable, sublicensable, royalty
free, worldwide license…”
mean?

12. This means that Facebook can
license your content to others
for free without obtaining your
approval (Delsack, 2012).

13. Facebook’s terms of use should rightfully spark
concerns about
Privacy

14. Even if you consider yourself to be
private online, that doesn’t mean
others can’t and won’t share your
information.

15. In Facebook’s Data Use Policy, the following is stated:
“We receive information about you from
your friends and others, such as when they
upload your contact information, post a
photo of you, tag you in a photo or status
update, or at a location, or add you to a
group…”

16. So, even if you feel in control of
the content you yourself share,
You should also be aware of the information
that Facebook receives about you from others.

17. To ensure a more increased privacy, you
should utliseFacebook’s privacy settings to
manage who can see the content you
post and who can contact you.

18. However, even if you are cautious or attentive
with your privacy settings, Facebook’s terms of
use includes the following statement:
“Sometimes you will not be able
to select an audience when
you post something. This is
because some types of stories
are always public stories.”

19. However, even if you are cautious or attentive
with your privacy settings, Facebook’s terms of
use includes the following statement:
“Sometimes you will not be able
to select an audience when
you post something. This is
because some types of stories
are always public stories.”
Therefore,you should always be careful about
what information you choose to share.

20. Facebook no longer allows users
to be “unsearchable”
 A recent change to Facebook’s privacy settings
means that all users can now be searchable on
the site.
 Luckily, only content that users have publically
shared will be available to those outside of their
network (Wagner, 2013).
 However, if you desire to be almost completely
private on Facebook,it is no longer possible.

21. A main concern for privacy is
Facebook’s reliance on advertising.
“Online marketers and other Internet companies
seek to profit from the Internet’s unique ability to
track the comings and goings of users, allowing for
more focused and therefore more lucrative
advertising” (Zeller, 2006).
With a social network as popular and
comprehensive as Facebook, it is no
exception for this sought after profit.

22. “…we may use the information we receive about
you to measure or understand the effectiveness
of ads you and others see…”
 This snippet from the terms of use raises questions
that maybe Facebook doesn’t really care about
our privacy?
 Social networking sites don’t just focus on
individuals, they predominantly focus on making
a profit from turning user data into trends and
patterns (Stoddart, 2007).
 This insufficient lack of care for individuals
extends from a lack of care of their privacy.

23. Surveillance
 Surveillance can be
referred to as “a focused
attention to personal details
aimed at exerting influence
over or managing the
objects of the data”
(Lyon, 2002).
 This is a significant mode of
governance in information
societies and exists among
Facebook.

24. “We receive data about you whenever you
interact with Facebook, such as when you look at
another person’s timeline, send or receive a
message, search for a friend or a Page, click
on, view or otherwise interact with things, use a
Facebook mobile app, or purchase Facebook
Credits or make other purchases through
Facebook.”

25. “We receive data about you whenever you
interact with Facebook, such as when you look at
another person’s timeline, send or receive a
message, search for a friend or a Page, click on,
view or otherwise interact with things, use a
Facebook mobile app, or purchase Facebook
Credits or make other purchases through
Facebook.”
So, pretty much everything you do on
Facebook, even the simple act of searching for
something, is under surveillance.

26. Information Facebook is
probably collecting from you:
(Couts 2012)

27. The notion of surveillance can lead to the related
issue of:
Censorship

28. “We also impose limitations on the
display of nudity. We aspire to
respect people’s right to share
content of personal
importance, whether those are
photos of a sculpture like
Michelangelo's David or family
photos of a child breastfeeding.”

29. In theory, this is a beneficial term of use for
Facebook users as it:
 Limits the risk of sharing pornographic content,
 Restricts immoral and illegal content, such as child
pornography.
 Regulates the sharing of content that can be
harmful to Facebook’s broad audience.

30. This has however led to
undeserved censorship.
 Erik Ravelo’s artwork was censored
by Facebook and he has been
prevented from uploading more
images.
 The controversial nature of the
artwork about issues plaguing
children is assumed to be the
reason for its censorship.
 The artwork does not feature
(Ravelo, 2012).
nudity, pornography and isn’t
threatening, which raises questions
about the amount of power and
control Facebook is exuding.

31. The censorship on Facebook can raise concerns
about the related issue of:
the freedom of expression

32. Freedom of Expression
 The Internet offers a great opportunity for users to
easily make their thoughts and opinions available to
a large audience (Fisher, 2001).
 When analysingFacebook’s terms of use, this
opportunity isn’t necessarily obtainable.

33. “You will not post content that is hate
speech, threatening or pornographic”
(Safety, #7)

34.  Users are not free to post
whatever they please.
 In most cases, this is for the
benefit of all other
users, creating an
appropriate and safe
network.
 It can still be said that the
limitations within Facebook’s
terms of use and its resulting
control can undermine a
user’s freedom.

35. In conclusion, the key features of
Facebook’s terms of use:
 Ownership of content
 As soon as you upload content to Facebook, it
becomes Facebook’s content as well.
 Facebook can do with it as they please.
 Privacy
 Your information can be received from others as well as
yourself.
 Facebook’s dependence on advertising has
empowered them to collect data from
users, disregarding their privacy.

36.  Surveillance
 Facebook keeps track of your Facebook activity.
 Censorship
 There are limits on what you can and cannot post.
 Facebook has the ability to remove content that they
believe goes against their terms.
 Freedom of Expression
 Users are not free to share anything they want.
 There is content that is prohibited.
 This can be beneficial, creating a safe and
appropriate network for all users.

37. The key features of Facebook’s terms of use policies
evidently raise concerns that involve all users
I hope that this
presentation has helped
you to better understand
Facebook’s policies and
how it affects you.

38. References
Couts, A. (2012) Terms & Conditions: Facebook's 'Data Use Policy' Explained. Retrieved 12
October, 2013 from:
http://www.digitaltrends.com/social-media/terms-conditions-facebooks-data-use-policyexplained/
Delsack, C (2012). Who Owns Photos and Videos Posted on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter?
Retrieved 12 October, 2013 from: http://www.nyccounsel.com/business-blogs-websites/who-ownsphotos-and-videos-posted-on-facebook-or-twitter/
Facebook. (2012). Facebook Terms and Policies. Facebook. Retrieved 8 September, 2013 from:
www.facebook.com/policies.
Fisher, W. (2001). Freedom of Expression on the Internet . Retrieved September 8, 2013, from The
BerkmanCenter for Internet & Society: http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/ilaw/Speech/
Lyon, D. (2002) “Everday Surveillance: Personal Data and Social Classification.”
Information, Communication and Society 5, no. 1 Retrieved from:
http://www.casa.ucl.ac.uk/cyberspace/lyon_ics.pdf
Ravelo, E. (2012) “Fast Food.” [image] Fabrica. The Untouchables.
Stoddart, J (2007) Privacy and Social Networks. Retrieved 9 October, 2013 from:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7gWEgHeXcA&feature=player_embedded
Smithers, R. (2011) Terms and Conditions: Not Reading the Small Print can Mean Big Problems. The
Guardian. Retrieved 2 October, 2013, from:
http://www.theguardian.com/money/2011/may/11/terms-conditions-small-print-big-problems
Images have been screen-shot from Facebook.
Surveillance image is from Microsoft’s clipart collection.