Today while posting a comment on a Yahoo story, I decided to change my avatar. I clicked on my picture and selected Change Picture. To my horror, I realized that my Yahoo account was somehow linked to my Facebook account! What??? I didn’t use my yahoo email account when I signed up for Facebook. I didn’t link my Facebook account to my Yahoo account while using Yahoo. How could this happen? It is happening because Facebook is allowing it to happen. We are being exposed without our explicit permission and, in many cases, without our knowledge. Facebook is creating a very dangerous situation for its members.

I signed up for a Facebook account because many of my family members are on Facebook and I wanted to give have a chance to communicate with them because they are on the other side of the country. I don’t add everyone I know to Facebook because it is far too personal. I don’t want everyone knowing my family or able to contact my family. I also don’t want people connected to the things I read or stories I like - not that I like crazy, outlandish stuff or anything like that. I just like privacy. Facebook is fast becoming the last place to be if you want that.

Communicating with family and friends is one thing. Having Facebook connect your data all over the web is something entirely different. If I wanted to do that I would use my name on everything I do on the web. I don’t! I went to comment on a story on People.com and realized that my Facebook account was connected there too. WTF? Facebook is going too far. I think it is time for a lawsuit. Facebook needs to understand that just because people want to share information with their family and friends does NOT mean that they want to share that same information with the world. It isn’t safe. My child is connected to my Facebook profile. I purposely don’t link my child as a family member, but I shouldn’t have to worry about that UNLESS I explicitly give Facebook permission to give my information out.

Facebook’s privacy settings are very stupid and it is starting to be a real problem. They need to stop sharing data that people do not want to share. It doesn’t matter if you can opt out AFTER they have shared the data. They need to ASK before they give out ANY information. Very stupid Facebook! Very stupid indeed.