Facebook is in the hotseat Monday following a report by the Wall Street Journal that Facebook applications “have been transmitting identifying information–in effect, providing access to people’s names and, in some cases, their friends’ names–to dozens of advertising and Internet tracking companies.” The privacy breach, which involved the sharing of users’ unique Facebook IDs, may have affected tens of millions of Facebook app users and is in violation of Facebook’s policies. The apps found to be sharing users’ personal information include FarmVille, Texas HoldEm, Mafia Wars, and more. (See them here)
Facebook issue a statement in response to the allegations saying that “press reports have exaggerated the implications of sharing a UID [or Facebook ID]” and noting that “In most cases, developers did not intend to pass this information, but did so because of the technical details of how browsers work.”
Although Facebook says it is “committed to addressing” this issue and temporarily disabled some of the apps that were in violation of its policies, there are some privacy settings you should know in order to keep your information secure. See 3 key tips for protecting your privacy in the slideshow below. Got other suggestions? Let us know in the comments below. Read more about the privacy breach