Mashable’s recent post In Defense of Facebook is very well put, and gave me cause for pause. It’s a very well constructed argument, and worth reading. But when you do, keep in mind that it’s disingenuous to say that if you put something online you expect it to be public; Facebook’s current size and power stems from them having at one time been the place you could go to privately communicate with a circle of people that you controlled. It was seen as a safe and private way to network online with your friends.

David Chartier wrote a fantastic comment on Mashable’s piece, which he reposted to his blog. The whole thing is worth a read, but here’s my favourite part (emphasis added by me):

When Facebook adds a new feature or changes its front page layout, it presents alerts, and popups, and static sidebar notifications which you have to click the next eight times you sign in to actually get rid of them. New features are shiny and fun and great, just like these new privacy changes that make us all friends and snuggly share-pals. So where were the alerts, and the popups, and the static sidebar notifications (which you have to click the next eight times you sign in) that let users know about this wondrous new privacy change? When you’re doing something you love, and you know is great, you proclaim it to the world. It makes you happy, and you know it will make other people happy. When you’re doing something wrong, or something for selfish or perhaps even malicious reasons, you don’t tell anyone because you know they won’t like it. You just do it and hope you don’t get caught.

I tried, and I think largely failed, to get this across in my Download Squad piece about Facebook. The privacy issues are concerning, for sure, but it is true that they’re manageable for most tech savvy people who can see through Facebook’s obsfucation and bullshit. The thing is, for the vast majority of Facebook’s users, it’s not manageable, and that’s how Facebook wants it.

If you know how to lock down your profile, it’s tempting to just do so and continue using Facebook. The problem is that by using Facebook, you are saying to your close friends and relatives, “Facebook is ok, you should use it too!” And some (most) of them might not (probably won’t) understand the dangers the way you do.

I didn’t deactivate my Facebook account because I’m afraid of them stealing my personal information and doing awful things with it (though because I don’t trust the people behind Facebook, I can’t say it’s not a bit of a concern), I deactivated it to signal to the people I care about that I don’t think Facebook is safe for most people, and I don’t think the people behind the company have good intentions.

If we blindly continue to trust and use Facebook, it will take over the web. The little Facebook “Like” buttons that are popping up all over the place are just the start. One day we’ll wake up and realize our tubes — the open, standards-based communication tool that anyone could equally participate in — are controlled by a greedy, power-hungry company that doesn’t have its user’s interests at heart.

Then what?

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