Accept - Your Facebook Profile Is Being Phished

You see it everyday. "Your best friend, John Doe, just took the "This Stupid Quiz. Take the quiz and see how stupid you think it is." This actual quiz may or may not actually exist. I wouldn't doubt it, one bit. The quizzes may be made by anyone, even yourself.

The platform that they are created on, and stored on belong to private companies and Facebook development teams. Their primary intent is to entice you to "Accept" their terms and conditions, which allow them to use your information about you and your friends information.

Wow, do you realize how many times you have put yourself out to the world at large? Each of these quizzes and games may be fun or slightly interesting to you, but rest assured that they are much more interesting to those who accessing your personal information.

My wife, Sharon, seemed skeptical. Last night she was on Facebook. She commented that one of the Ads had gotten her name incorrect. It asked her, "Kristin", with a picture of my wife, if she would like to take the quiz and match it to that of her friend.

She clicked on the ad. She clicked on the "Accept" button, without reading the fine print. Now she is taking the quiz and the software has learned of it's mistake and begin calling her Sharon instead of Kristin. Coincidence? I know that it is not. I have spent my career creating web systems that cache or collect a users information. For the business it is imperative to learn as much about the clientele as possible, in order to provide the most focused advertising and statistics for their clients.

Next time, don't just click "Accept" and go through to the game. Read the fine print. Because I did, I now know why I keep getting advertising for impotence and not women's hygiene products. I know why my face book knows that I am a 47 year old, male, Motley Crew fan.