If you’re fed up with the meta right now, you’re not alone. Google searches for Facebook and Instagram deletion spiked last week After Meta announced its latest policy changes. At first glance, these changes seem designed to soothe Including the next Trump administration Relaxing Meta’s hate speech policy Allows targeting of LGBTQ+ people and immigrants.
When these change—or meta length history of anti-competitive, censorious, and invasive practiceYou may want to cut ties with your company, but unfortunately, it’s not as simple as deleting your Facebook account or cutting back on your Instagram time. Meta tracks your activity across millions of websites and apps, regardless of whether you use its platform or not, and profits from that data through targeted ads. If you want to limit Meta’s ability to collect and profit from your personal data, you should know the following:
Meta’s business model relies on personal data
You might think of Meta as a social media company, but its main business is: surveillance advertising. meta business model relies on collecting as much information as possible about people in order to sell targeted advertising. That’s why meta one of the major companies It tracks you across the internet and monitors your activity far beyond its own platform. When Apple introduced changes that made it harder to track on the iPhone; Meta lost billions of dollars in revenueshows how valuable your personal data is to that business.
How Meta collects personal data
Meta’s tracking tools are built into: millions of of website and appTherefore, simply avoiding or deleting Facebook or Instagram is not enough to escape corporate surveillance. Meta’s tracking pixels are located at: 30% of the world’s most popular websitescan monitor people’s behavior across the web and potentially reveal sensitive information such as: finance and spiritual health data. 2022 Survey by markup We discovered that one-third of the top US hospitals were sending sensitive patient information to Meta through tracking pixels.
Meta’s monitoring is not limited to online activity. The company too encourage business To transmit data about your offline purchases and interactions. Deleting your Facebook or Instagram account will not stop Meta from collecting your personal data. 2018 meta acknowledged Collection of information about non-userscontact details and browsing history.
To limit meta-profits from your personal data, please take the following steps
Although Meta’s surveillance systems are widespread, there are ways to limit how Meta collects and uses your personal data.
Update meta account settings
Open your Instagram or Facebook app. Account center page.
If your Facebook and Instagram accounts are linked, Account center Your page only needs to update the following settings once: If not, you’ll need to update Facebook and Instagram separately. Once you find your way to your destination, Account centerthe steps below are the same for both platforms.
The meta makes finding and updating these settings unnecessarily difficult. The steps below are accurate at the time of publication, but Meta often changes settings and adds additional steps. The languages below may not exactly match the language that Meta displays in your region, but require settings that control each of the following permissions:
Once you’re on the Account Center page, make the following changes:
1) Stop Meta from targeting ads based on data collected about you on other apps and websites.
Click “Ad Settings” Select an option under (Account Center) and Information management tab (this tab is Ad settings (depending on where you live). Click. Activity information from advertising partners options, then Review settings. Please select an option for No, we don’t use this information to make your ads more relevant Click the Confirm button when prompted.
2) Prevent Meta from using your data (from Facebook and Instagram) to help advertisers target you on other apps. Meta’s ad network connects advertisers with other apps through privacy-invasive ad auctions, generating more money and data for Meta in the process.
go back Ad settings on the page, Manage your information Press tab again (it will be called) Ad settings depending on your region), next, Ads displayed outside of meta settings, selection not allowed Click the “X” button to close the popup.
Depending on your region, this setting is called (Advertisements from advertising partners) on the (Manage information) tab.
3) Separate data about you that other companies share with Meta from your account.
from Account center on the screen, Your information and permissions options, followed by Your activity from metatechnologyafter that Manage upcoming activities. On this screen, select the following options: Disconnect from future activityfollowed by Continue Click the button to confirm again. Disconnect from future activities button. Note: This may take up to 48 hours to take effect.
Note: This will also clear any previous activity that may have logged you out of apps and websites you signed in to via Facebook.
While making these settings, limit How Meta uses your data does not necessarily prevent companies from collecting it and potentially using it for other purposes.
Install Privacy Badger to block Meta trackers
privacy badger is a free browser extension by EFF that blocks trackers, such as the Meta pixel, from loading on websites you visit. It also replaces embedded Facebook posts, Like buttons, and Share buttons. Click to activate placeholderblocking another way for the meta to track you. The next version of Privacy Badger (scheduled for release next week) will extend this protection to embedded Instagram and threaded posts, and data will also be sent to Meta.
visit privacybadger.org Install Privacy Badger in your web browser. Currently, Firefox on Android is the only mobile browser that supports Privacy Badger.
Limit meta tracking on your phone
Perform these additional steps on your mobile device:
Disable your mobile advertising ID Meta makes it difficult to track user behavior across apps. Follow EFF’s instructions to do this. iPhone or android device.
Turn off location access for Meta apps. Meta doesn’t need to know where you are at all times to work, and you can safely disable access to your location without affecting how the Facebook or Instagram apps work. Check this setting using EFF’s guide. iPhone or android device.
The real solution: Strong privacy laws
There’s no need to tinker with hidden settings or install browser extensions to stop untrusted companies from profiting from your personal data. Instead, data should be made private by default. That’s why it’s necessary Strong federal privacy laws This puts you in control of the information, not the meta.
Without strong privacy laws, Meta will continue to find ways to circumvent your privacy protections and monetize your personal data. Privacy means not only protecting sensitive information, but having the power to prevent companies like Meta from exploiting personal data for profit.
