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You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/blog/2013/jul/08/facebook-launch-graph-search-privacy-concerns
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| Graph Search - coming to a Facebook near you | Graph Search - coming to a Facebook near you |
| (about 21 hours later) | |
| If your Facebook language is set to US English, you might find that your account has added a new feature from today. | If your Facebook language is set to US English, you might find that your account has added a new feature from today. |
| Facebook is rolling out Graph Search, a new search tool that will allow users to quickly find out information from across the site. Essentially, it's an attempt to keep hold of an active user base by keeping them on the site for longer. | Facebook is rolling out Graph Search, a new search tool that will allow users to quickly find out information from across the site. Essentially, it's an attempt to keep hold of an active user base by keeping them on the site for longer. |
| In some ways, Graph Search is simply a natural extension to the News Feed. In the book about her experiences while at Facebook, The Boy Kings, Katherine Losse writes: | |
| "The general concept of News Feed was simple: An algorithm was now surfacing content that it believed, based on your activity on the site (what you looked at), you would find interesting." | "The general concept of News Feed was simple: An algorithm was now surfacing content that it believed, based on your activity on the site (what you looked at), you would find interesting." |
| Now, instead of having to follow a social graph containing your friends' activities, Graph Search opens up your information even further. You can ask Facebook questions about your friends and find out the results, quickly. | Now, instead of having to follow a social graph containing your friends' activities, Graph Search opens up your information even further. You can ask Facebook questions about your friends and find out the results, quickly. |
| Facebook would argue that they are making it easier to find useful information that's relevant to you. Say, for example, you're planning a holiday to Istanbul and you're looking for somewhere to stay. You've gone through Trip Advisor and every hotel that you've looked at has one of those delightful one-star reviews ("I was sitting by the side of the glorious pool when I suddenly saw one of the catering staff push a little child into the pool. DO NOT RECOMMEND."). | Facebook would argue that they are making it easier to find useful information that's relevant to you. Say, for example, you're planning a holiday to Istanbul and you're looking for somewhere to stay. You've gone through Trip Advisor and every hotel that you've looked at has one of those delightful one-star reviews ("I was sitting by the side of the glorious pool when I suddenly saw one of the catering staff push a little child into the pool. DO NOT RECOMMEND."). |
| In such a scenario, Graph Search would claim to offer more relevant information by looking for recommendations from a friend. Searching 'Friends that have gone to Istanbul on holiday' would bring up a list of all the friends in your network who have either listed Istanbul as somewhere they have visited on their timeline or have checked in to a location in that city. You can then message them and get a recommendation. | |
| Building on this example, Graph Search could provide a pseudo Lonely Planet. If you use it to search for images of Istanbul, you would find publicly uploaded images, as well as images uploaded to the site by your friends. Going through this, you could browse the places they visited during their trip. | Building on this example, Graph Search could provide a pseudo Lonely Planet. If you use it to search for images of Istanbul, you would find publicly uploaded images, as well as images uploaded to the site by your friends. Going through this, you could browse the places they visited during their trip. |
| Yet Graph Search extends beyond simply 'useful information' and makes it easier to look for information that you want. It's well-known that Mark Zuckerberg likes being able to get data efficiently - but in user terms, what does this mean? You could use Graph Search to find friends who speak a specific language, look for pictures that include you or a friend, or just search for photos that you have 'liked'. If Facebook can't provide an answer, it will list results from the internet. | Yet Graph Search extends beyond simply 'useful information' and makes it easier to look for information that you want. It's well-known that Mark Zuckerberg likes being able to get data efficiently - but in user terms, what does this mean? You could use Graph Search to find friends who speak a specific language, look for pictures that include you or a friend, or just search for photos that you have 'liked'. If Facebook can't provide an answer, it will list results from the internet. |
| Any new product launch, however, especially at Facebook, brings along with it a new privacy scare. Do you really want friends to be able to search through everything that you have 'liked' from around the web? | Any new product launch, however, especially at Facebook, brings along with it a new privacy scare. Do you really want friends to be able to search through everything that you have 'liked' from around the web? |
| We listed some of these problems in January: | We listed some of these problems in January: |
| In a blog launched on Wednesday, a series of controversial search results have been made public, showing the extent to which those who share photos, personal information and 'likes' on Facebook could have their privacy invaded. | In a blog launched on Wednesday, a series of controversial search results have been made public, showing the extent to which those who share photos, personal information and 'likes' on Facebook could have their privacy invaded. |
| Graph Search has served up lists of family members of people who live in China and like Falun Gong, people who like the extreme rightwing group the English Defence League but also enjoy a curry, and Islamic men who are interested in other men and live in Tehran, where homosexuality is persecuted. | Graph Search has served up lists of family members of people who live in China and like Falun Gong, people who like the extreme rightwing group the English Defence League but also enjoy a curry, and Islamic men who are interested in other men and live in Tehran, where homosexuality is persecuted. |
| Other lists included Tesco employees who like horses - a reference to the discovery of horse DNA in burgers sold by the supermarket chain - and spouses of people who like Ashley Madison, a dating site for people already in relationships. | Other lists included Tesco employees who like horses - a reference to the discovery of horse DNA in burgers sold by the supermarket chain - and spouses of people who like Ashley Madison, a dating site for people already in relationships. |
| Facebook has anticipated this, however, and in December released a blog post entitled, 'Better controls for managing your content'. This accompanied a new set of tools that they launched to make it apparently easier for users to control where their information appears across the site. | Facebook has anticipated this, however, and in December released a blog post entitled, 'Better controls for managing your content'. This accompanied a new set of tools that they launched to make it apparently easier for users to control where their information appears across the site. |
| But for most Facebook users, the reality is that if you have been sharing information on the site for a number of years, you probably haven't paid attention to who it was being shared with or how. The permanent addition of Graph Search will most certainly bring about yet another wave of controversy around privacy and the social network's use of users' data. Haven't we been here before? | But for most Facebook users, the reality is that if you have been sharing information on the site for a number of years, you probably haven't paid attention to who it was being shared with or how. The permanent addition of Graph Search will most certainly bring about yet another wave of controversy around privacy and the social network's use of users' data. Haven't we been here before? |