ad targeting
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FTC moves to ban BetterHelp from sharing mental health data for ad targeting
The FTC says online counseling company BetterHelp shared mental health data with platforms including Facebook and Snapchat for ad targeting purposes.
EU will reportedly bar Meta from requiring personalized ads (updated)
The EU is reportedly set to bar Meta from requiring that you accept personalized ads.
EU seeks to block political ads that target people's ethnicity or religion
Organizations would need to disclose how ads are paid for and how they are targeting certain groups.
Facebook is reportedly trying to analyze encrypted data without deciphering it
The approach could bolster Facebook's ad-targeting efforts.
Signal tried to use Facebook's targeted advertising data against it
Signal is accusing Facebook of disabling its ad account after it tried to expose its ad targeting practices.
Study suggests Facebook shows users different job ads based on their gender
Gender identity seemed to impact whether someone saw an employment ad for NVIDIA or Netflix.
Google antitrust lawsuit amended to target Chrome’s Privacy Sandbox
Five more attorneys general have joined the suit, taking the total to 15.
Facebook will let researchers study its election ad targeting data
'Understanding the online political advertising landscape is key to protecting elections.'
Oculus is rolling out its expanded social VR features
Along with Quest hand tracking, one of Facebook's big announcements at Oculus Connect 6 in September was a batch of social VR features. You'll get to try them over the coming days, as Oculus is starting to roll them out.
Now Twitter users can enable two-factor without linking a phone number
Twitter has finally made a change users have been waiting a long time to see. No, it's not editable tweets, but as of today everyone can enable two-factor authentication on their account without linking a phone number. While SMS-based two-factor can be a fallback for people who lose access to code-generating devices or don't have security keys, it's very vulnerable to SIM-swapping attacks. Twitter added code generator support a while ago, but still asked users to add a phone number if they wanted the extra verification and you couldn't remove the fallback. That's upsetting for those concerned about their privacy, they may not want to link a phone number to their account at all, and Twitter has already admitted that it used phone-numbers to target ads even for users who declined that. Attackers used SIM-swapping to send tweets from Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey's account earlier this year, and while the exploit didn't use two-factor codes, it showed how vulnerable the SMS-based system can be. If you already have a phone number linked in your profile, then you can go ahead and remove it now. However, a security engineer noted that you can't remove the number and rely simply on a security key for access since that's only supported on the website.
Facebook will be liable for future Cambridge Analytica-style scandals
Facebook is updating its terms and conditions after agreeing several changes with the EU. It will have to clearly explain to users they can access the social network for free because it uses targeted ads that rely on user data. Facebook will also have to disclose what revenues it generates through the use of such data.
US government charges Facebook with housing discrimination
The Department of Housing and Urban Development has charged Facebook with violating the Fair Housing Act. It says the company encouraged, enabled and caused housing discrimination through ad targeting. The charge follows a complaint the department filed against Facebook in August.
Multiple iOS apps are reportedly sharing sensitive data with Facebook (updated)
At least 11 popular apps are reportedly sharing people's sensitive data with Facebook, even if they don't have an account on the social network. The Wall Street Journal found that apps which can help track personal information such as body weight, menstrual cycles and pregnancy are sending such details to Facebook.
