[paulsutter]

Its curious that the media is going to such great lengths to paint Facebook as villians.

My own Facebook stream is travel photos, people saying gushy things about their spouse, plus a few people still obsessed with Trump. Harmless stuff.

Our lives must be pretty cushy when this is one of the biggest dangers that we face.

[opmac]

Unfortunately I believe your myopic viewpoint is exactly what Facebook has driven to create.

[paulsutter]

What are the sinister threats in your Facebook feed? Or are you just speculating about what the unwashed masses must be seeing?

[calgoo]

Well, if I remember correctly, they track your web navigation using that little like button on every page (even if you don't click it). Then there is the issue that its working on identifying exactly who you live with, where you work, who you socialize with etc. These are things that i can think of right now, and im sure there are a lot more.

Edit: While you where talking mostly about content of fb, i see these issues as being the biggest problem for me personally. I was on the internet in the late 90s and we learned early on never trust anything written on the web, and i apply the same to FB/Twitter/HN/Reddit etc.

[paulsutter]

Take a look at LiveRamp. And LiveRamp is just the tip of the iceberg.

Effective privacy legislation wont change the user experience of Facebook by much. And it would be a great idea.

[opmac]

Not sure about threats, but I've seen plenty of fake news, conspiracies, etc; many of which have been tied to Russian disinformation groups (or other malignant foreign interests). See the Nation in Distress group; https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2018/10/11/faceboo....

[paulsutter]

You saw these in your own feed? Do share

[pixl97]

Sounds like you're caught up in your own FB reality tunnel.

[opmac]

Of course. All it requires is some naive (usually older) family members. In this case, my in-laws are in their 70s, and extremely right-wing. They would share stuff from the Nation in Distress group all the time before Facebook banned it. That is just one example; Facebook has been extremely instrumental in providing a platform for disinformation and propaganda. Just because you don't see it in your own bubble, does not mean it is not a threat.

[sgt101]

Also what's not there? What are you not seeing? Have you wondered about the world outside your bubble?

[ecshafer]

This is one of the things that individual experience can vary a lot. My Facebook is maybe 30% racist rants, bashing liberals, and a call to arms against the government for taking away guns. Another 30% is people ranting about Trump and talk to about a communist revolution. 30% is memes. 10% is travel photos and news about lives.