Facebook harvested phone call and SMS data from Android users for years

[SgtTupelo]

I have FB because my mentally challenged cousins randomly send me messages in one of 3 ways: SMS, Facebook, WhatsApp when they need help with something. Same person may send an SMS, then contact me via Facebook next time, switch back to SMS, then WhatsApp me next time. I don't understand why.

[Spazi]

Using the personal data probably isn't and shouldn't be illegal.

There should be however strict rules on how you must store such very private data and what you can do with it.

As it stands your EULA could say "we can do whatever we want with your private information" and people would still use the service, setting up a privacy crisis of great scale

[Tamschi]

I think they just lost a privacy case here in Germany, so as far as EU law goes at least some of it is not exactly legal.
I'm not sure that actually goes for the phone metadata though, since I haven't looked further than the headline into the ruling.

[Zombie Strider]

Its so funny seeing this tweet blow up; I used to work with the guy and he's pretty smart and cool.

I'm really not surprised about this tbh. I've studied companies tracking things through cookies etc, but the more privacy you want, the less functionality and ease of use you get - there's no having both.

[Killuah]

AFAIK the downloaded data you get is not everything they have

[nalyD]

I remember when Facebook first launched their Android app almost a decade ago now, this was in the news and no one cared.

Privacy advocates have been yelling everything in the news lately for the last decade into deaf ears, but now it's tied up into how Trump got elected so it's just getting attention.

http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2012/02/26/facebook-spies-on-phone-users-text-messages-report-says.html
https://www.tomsguide.com/us/Permissions-Facebook-text-messages-terms-and-conditions-security,news-14291.html
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2547326/Is-Facebook-reading-TEXTS-Android-app-update-lets-app-access-written-picture-messages.html
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/facebook-messenger-privacy-warning/

[Omesh]

Downloaded my facebook data and somehow there's all my phone contacts there. Up until a few days ago I used an old iphone (seems like it happened with that device judging from the list) that could use messenger, but not any of those sms integrations so I don't remember getting a prompt asking for access. Not sure they how they got it.