\tFacebook again came under fire for allegedly gathering user location data without consent, as US politicians continued to express concern about the ways the social media giant obtains personal information and reiterated calls for increased user control.<\/p>\n
Senators Josh Hawley and Christopher Coons criticised the social media giant’s response to concerns they raised in November [1], after Facebook explained the ways it can obtain data about users\u2019 location.<\/p>\n
Hawley posted Facebook’s response on Twitter. In it, the company explained it can access users’ data when given direct consent, but also noted it can track location data from a device\u2019s IP address and through people\u2019s activity on the platform, including when a user uploads a location-tagged post, is tagged by a friend or responds to an event.<\/p>\n
Facebook noted a user\u2019s actions \u201cwould give us information about that person\u2019s likely location\u201d rather than their exact position.<\/p>\n
The company explained location-related information helped to enable connections between people, showing \u201cthings relevant to where you are and to improve ads\u201d, and keeping \u201cpeople and our platform safe, like recognising if people\u2019s accounts have been compromised\u201d.<\/p>\n
It also argued its approach contributed to halting the spread of false news.<\/p>\n
In a response, Hawley commented there was no means to opt-out of location tracking and argued customers don\u2019t have control over their personal information. He pleaded to the US Congress to take action in resolving the matter.<\/p>\n
Coons, meanwhile, told CNBC: \u201cFacebook claims that users are in control of their own privacy, but in reality, users aren\u2019t even given an option to stop Facebook from collecting and monetising their location information\u201d.<\/p>\n[1] https:\/\/www.mobileworldlive.com\/featured-content\/apps-home-banner\/facebook-under-fire-for-location-tracking\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Facebook again came under fire for allegedly gathering user location data without consent, as US …<\/p>\n
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