Facebook may be using your likeness without your permission to advertise their clients

By Renoir Salgado | 11/10/12 | www.trueskool.com

In mid-August 2012, Facebook rolled out changes in Facebook's advertising model, providing a way for advertisers to reach people who haven’t “liked” a company’s Facebook page.  Labeled as "Sponsored Stories" or "Sponsored Ads", their new advertising tactics entailed that the ads would show up in the users newsfeed when a Facebook friend engaged with the ad.  According to CNET, "People may not know that when they click a Like button, post a comment, or share a link on a company's Facebook page, they may become part of an online ad network."

I began seeing these ads more frequently in my timeline indicating that some of my friends "liked" companies like Walmart, Exxon, McDonald's, and sometimes Mitt Romney.  At first, I was disappointed that some of my friends would actually "like" those corporations.  But then I started having suspicions that this was happening to people without their knowledge or consent.  

I had to do some investigating myself to be sure.  Googling "Sponsored Stories, sponsored ads, fake likes", I found many articles in which Facebook was cracking down on fake likes, with little mention that Facebook was itself guilty of liking ads on your behalf with out your knowledge.  

And then, Jackpot!  I found this article in Wired magazine (Oct 2012), "Facebook Agrees to Pay $10 to Each ‘Sponsored Stories’ Victim" which details "Facebook is agreeing to pay up to $10 each to users who appeared in the social-networking site’s “Sponsored Stories” advertising program without their permission".  A small compensation for impersonating you and assassinating your character, where "only a small fraction of plaintiffs in a class-action usually fill out the necessary paperwork to collect their rewards".  According to Webpronews, the case involved a "class-action lawsuit filed by a handful of California plaintiffs. Their original complaint was that Facebook, through their Sponsored Stories, violated their privacy. They said that Facebook was guilty of using their likenesses in Sponsored Stories without their consent, compensation, or the choice to opt out." 

Wired points out that:

Under the deal, in which Facebook admits no wrongdoing, Facebook agrees to clarify its terms of service:

You give us permission to use your name, profile picture, content, and information in connection with commercial, sponsored, or related content (such as a brand you like) served or enhanced by us. This means, for example, that you permit a business or other entity to pay us to display your name and/or profile picture with your content or information. If you have selected a specific audience for your content or information, we will respect your choice when we use it.

In additon:

Under the old deal and the new one lodged Saturday, Facebook agreed to give its adult users the right to “control” but not eliminate how the social-networking site uses their faces in ads under Facebook’s “Sponsored Stories” program. Minors have the ability to completely opt out.

 

UPDATE: Judge mulls over Facebook's offer in 'sponsored stories' suit (11/15/12)
RELATED: Mark Cuban: Facebook Is Driving Away Brands - Starting With Mine

How to Opt-Out

According to CNet, you can remove your name from social ads by:

Step 1: Log in to your Facebook account on the Web.

(Credit: Screenshot by Nicole Cozma/CNET)

Step 2: Open the small menu with the down arrow to the right of your name in the top right-hand corner and select Account Settings.

Steps 3 and 4.

(Credit: Screenshot by Nicole Cozma/CNET)

Step 3: On the left-hand side, choose Facebook Ads from the list.

Step 4: Click the link at the bottom that says Edit social ads setting.

(Credit: Screenshot by Nicole Cozma/CNET)

Step 5: Select No One from the drop-down list on the next page and press Save Changes.

After this adjustment you'll stop sharing information about your interests with everyone on your friends list.