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  • New Facebook Privacy Settings
Technology Articles > Social Networking > Social Network News > New Facebook Privacy Settings

Facebook has long been criticized for its lack of privacy settings. When the social networking platform began, very few privacy settings were available to users. Not too long ago, Facebook made it possible for users to control certain account aspects, though these controls came in the form of hundreds of different privacy settings and possibilities. Needless to say, these options were confusing and muddled at best.

Now that Facebook is facing a tough competitor (Google Plus), the company has no choice but to offer users more control over privacy options. The new privacy settings that will be available to users include ways to oversee content, photographs, and other aspects of the social network. While promising, there is some concern that these options may not be enough.

Photo Tagging Changes

At the moment, anyone can tag a picture of you that is posted on a Facebook profile. You can untag these photos, but you can only do so after a picture has been posted. This can be a personal nightmare if you don’t like the way that you look or are represented in a photo. Now, Facebook will offer users the option to approve photo tagging before a photo has been posted. This is, in every manner, a good thing.

The downside to the new photo tagging option is that users can now tag anyone in a photo – whether or not the person tagged is a friend of the user who posts a photo. For example, you can post a picture of yourself with a celebrity and tag that celebrity. This was not possible before, but, then again, you always have the option to block a tag. In addition, you can block the person who tries to tag you indefinitely.

Notification and Update Changes

Taking a cue from Google Plus, the new Facebook will also allow users to restrict certain posts and notifications. As soon as the new privacy settings are in place, users will be able to control who can and cannot see an update. This is similar to the Google Plus setup that allows users to send notifications to certain circles of people while leaving other people out of the loop.

Let’s say, for example, that you only want your immediate friends to see a picture of that last barbeque beach party. You will be able to select those people who you want to view a photo while excluding everyone else from viewing the picture. This new feature is certain to come in handy. It will also be possible to see how your profile looks from the perspective of a user, so you can see what your mom sees while she’s looking at your nice clean profile.

Location Information

Lastly, Facebook will soon allow you to tag the location of certain photos. If you want to list the address of a restaurant or someone’s house, you can do this with the new Facebook. Sound scary? Facebook execs have stated that all users must grant Facebook permission to tag the location of a photo before the photo is posted. This, according to Facebook, will prevent misuse of the feature. All of these changes are set to appear on a Facebook page near you this week.