Facebook Beacon

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Introduced in 2007, the controversial feature known as Facebook^[2] Beacon was a creation of the social media behemoth, Facebook. Initially, it was launched in collaboration with 44 partner websites, and its purpose was to transmit user data from these external sites to Facebook, thereby enabling targeted advertising^[1]. However, it sparked a considerable privacy uproar as it disseminated user activities on News Feed without obtaining their approval, utilizing a 1×1 GIF^[3] web bug and Facebook cookies. This resulted in a barrage of criticism and legal hurdles, with Facebook’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, conceding it was an error in 2011. Following a class-action lawsuit, the feature was discontinued in 2009, culminating in a $9.5 million settlement for privacy infringements and the creation of a $6 million fund dedicated to online privacy endeavors. Despite the scandal, Beacon’s impact has shaped future online tracking regulations and debates on data sharing ethics, thereby influencing Facebook’s present privacy policies.

Terms definitions

1. ↑ targeted advertising. Targeted advertising is an advertising strategy that prioritizes the delivery of promotional content to distinct audience groups. This approach relies on the collection and examination of user information to customize advertisements based on people's interests, actions, and demographic characteristics. Targeted advertising can take various forms, including tracking website visits by internet service providers, search engine marketing, and leveraging platforms such as Google's Search and Display Network.This strategy also finds its application in social media, where platforms employ behavioral targeting and geotargeting. For example, Facebook practices micro-targeting using user information. Furthermore, there are numerous techniques for targeted advertising, encompassing content, contextual, technical, time, sociodemographic, and geographical targeting.Targeted advertising is also widespread in the mobile and television industries. Mobile advertisements take advantage of consumer location and timing, whereas television advertisements concentrate on demographics and interests. Cable boxes and over-the-top video platforms further enable targeted advertising. The primary goal of these techniques is to enhance the effectiveness and relevance of advertising.

2. ↑ Facebook ( Facebook ) Meta Platforms, previously known as Facebook, is a prominent internet corporation that originated as a social networking site. The brainchild of Mark Zuckerberg in 2004, Meta Platforms swiftly spread from Harvard to other educational institutions, eventually reaching the wider public and becoming a global sensation. Its appealing user interface and diverse features such as Groups, the Developer Platform, and Meta Platforms Dating are well-known. Despite encountering backlash over matters like privacy violations and the proliferation of misinformation, Meta Platforms continues to hold a strong position in the digital sphere. It has made remarkable progress in the realm of technology, including the creation of its distinctive data storage system, the employment of PHP for its platform, and the introduction of the Hack programming language. In the past few years, the company has pivoted its attention towards the metaverse, a virtual reality domain where users can engage with a digitally-created environment.

Facebook Beacon (Wikipedia)

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Beacon formed part of Facebook's advertisement system that sent data from external websites to Facebook, for the purpose of allowing targeted advertisements and allowing users to share their activities with their friends. Beacon reported to Facebook on Facebook's members' activities on third-party sites that also participated with Beacon. These activities were published in users' News Feed. This occurred even when users were not connected to Facebook, and happened without the knowledge of the Facebook user. The service was controversial and became the target of a class-action lawsuit, resulting in it shutting down in September 2009. One of the main concerns was that Beacon did not give the user the option to block the information from being sent to Facebook. Beacon was launched on November 6, 2007, with 44 partner websites. Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Facebook, characterized Beacon on the Facebook Blog in November 2011 as a "mistake." Although Beacon was unsuccessful, it did pave the way for Facebook Connect, which has become widely popular.

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