Friday 21 December 2012

Facebook's new Privacy Settings: what's changed

Facebook has redesigned its site yet again; this time bringing privacy settings "up front" to try and make them easier to find.

It will still take a lot of getting used to as there are simply so many settings to contend with, so we'll be doing a series of tutorials over the next few days and weeks to help you figure it all out. Facebook has also summarised them.
Here are some highlights to expect:
Contextual tips: You will see some pop-up "information" boxes appear when you navigate these settings in Facebook for the first time.
Three privacy shortcuts:
Click the lock icon on the top right of the page to view a drop-down menu with three of Facebook's major privacy settings:

1. Who can see my stuff? Click this, and you'll be presented with three choices; in the graphic below you see my own settings. Under "Who can see my future posts?" you can select the default audience for your posts. Note that you can also tweak these on an individual basis.
The "Activity Log" shortcut will take you to the new-look area that lets you see exactly what you're tagged in (such as photos), along with all the activity you've conducted using various apps (such as all the songs you're guessing on SongPop) and who else can see this activity.
Under "What do other people see on my Timeline", click "view as". You can type in the name of a friend (or view as the public) and see exactly what information about you is accessible to them. In everyone's case, the cover photos will be public, along with the comments and Likes associated with them.

  • Who can see my future posts?
    Friends except acquaintances
    This is the same setting you find right where you post, and changing it there will update it here.
  • Where can I review all my posts and things I'm tagged in?
    Use Activity Log
What do other people see on my Timeline?
View As


2. Who can send me Facebook messages? Click this, and you'll see who can send you Facebook messages (or not).

3. How do I stop someone from bothering me? Click this, and you can type in the name or email address of someone who is harassing you and they'll be unfriended and blocked from sending you messages. Under "View All Blocked Users" you can see who you've blocked, if anyone. There are just the three main privacy shortcuts, but there are loads more. At the bottom of this menu, click "see more settings" and you'll be taken to the "Privacy Settings and Tools" page. (This is also accessible by clicking the cog icon on the top right of your page and selecting Privacy Settings from the menu.)


Privacy Settings and Tools:
On this page you will see a slightly different version of the privacy settings that were on previous Facebook versions. Most of these settings remain unchanged, apart from one major addition.

Under Timeline and Tagging on the left-hand side, there is a new setting called: "When you're tagged in a post, who do you want to add to the audience if they aren't already in it?"

This is a slightly confusing setting as it is meant to help restrict a photo of you from being spread around if you don't want it to, but people you don't know may still see it. For example if John tags you in one of his photos, and makes that photo accessible to his 700 friends, then those 700 friends will still see that photo and the tag. And if you haven't changed the tag settings on your own profile, then all of your friends will see it too, as the default sharing options for tagged photos if you is that all your friends will see it. You can change the tag settings in this section, so that all external photos that friends tag you in can only be seen by a selection of your own friends, (or even no one else except you if you like). However, that still doesn't prevent John from uploading a photo of you for his own friends to see.
The only way to solve that is to manage the photos you are tagged in and ask for the photo to be taken down. You can also untag yourself from the photo. The ability to do this is now available through the new-look Activity Log under Photos in the left-hand sidebar. Here, you can browse all the photos you are tagged in, and also view them according to who they are shared with. You can then request a removal of the photo, or simply untag yourself.

Activity log Photos of You



For now, this is just a brief overview of the changes. What do you think of them? Are they confusing or a welcome change? Does it make the site any slower or clunkier to use?

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