Facebook is Giving Me a Headache

Over the past week, I've spent more time reading about the privacy concerns of Facebook users than the time I spent on Facebook over the past 3 months. My head is spinning because there is so much backlash out there, it's impossible to keep up. To be honest, the thought of this issue would not have crossed my mind if it wasn't discussed in class on Monday. Nevertheless, I found the following excerpt from a Newsweek article interesting:

The fear is that people are being lured into Facebook with the promise of a fun, free service, and don't realize that they're paying for it by giving up loads of personal information. Facebook then attempts to "monetize" one's data by selling it to advertisers that want to send targeted messages.

Most folks using Facebook have no idea this is happening. Even if you're very tech-savvy and do know what the company is up to, you still have no idea what you're paying for Facebook, because people don't really know what their personal data is worth.

I guess I am one of the "folks using Facebook [who] have no idea this is happening." But, when I truly think about it, of course I knew "this" was happening. Facebook is a business just like any other business. It is going to do everything it can to make money, i.e., selling its product (user information) to its customers that have a need for this information at the highest possible profit. Fortunately for Facebook, the COGS is zero. I am a supplier of the product Facebook is selling and guess what ... I am supplying my information to Facebook for free. Shame on me. Ultimately, this will be the reason why I deactivate my account.