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From Apryl Duncan, for About.com

Facebook Ad System Stirs Controversy

Monday December 3, 2007
Facebook's online ad system, Beacon, is causing a lot of controversy among its members. Users say their privacy is being violated because their activity is being tracked and posted online. The Beacon ad system works like this: A Facebook user buys a movie ticket from Fandango.com, for example. A few minutes later, the user's Facebook profile automatically updates announcing the latest purchase the user has made.

More on Facebook's Beacon:

Or let's say you purchase tickets to Cancun through Travelocity.com. Your Facebook profile then updates to show you're planning on taking a trip.

About 50,000 Facebook members have signed an online petition to stop Facebook's Beacon from making their private transactions public. The company has already modified its policy, giving users the choice on sharing their Internet activity with others or keeping it private.

Users can change their profile under "Privacy Settings for External Websites." Other users say a box appears at the end of their transaction allowing you to opt-out of sharing your purchase info but that the box disappears too quickly.

Is Facebook going too far? Share your opinion.
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