After a report claimed that Facebook allowed about 60 device makers, including Apple and Samsung, to access personal information of users and their friends, the social network has defended the pacts saying that these partnerships do not raise privacy concerns.
It said it forged partnerships with around 60 companies back when mobile phones were less powerful and app stores did not yet exist. The social media company said it gave device makers access to software only so they could build versions of the social media network that worked on different phones or operating systems.
Even before Facebook apps were widely available on smartphones, the social-networking site had data-sharing partnerships with the device makers, the report said citing company officials, adding that most of the deals remain in effect.
“These partners signed agreements that prevented people’s Facebook information from being used for any other purpose than to recreate Facebook-like experiences,” Ime Archibong, the site’s vice president of product partnerships, wrote in a blog post.
Archibong said that in the early days of mobile, the demand for the site outpaced the company’s ability to build versions of the product that worked on every phone or operating system.
“We are not aware of any abuse by these companies,” he added, noting that Facebook has been “winding down access” to the software.
Facebook disputed that finding, saying that “friends’ information, like photos, was only accessible on devices when people made a decision to share their information with those friends.”
But the revelations quickly drew criticism and concern.
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