Facebook

[Cassie]

Someone emailed a Facebook invite to me and I was wondering.. how does Facebook know about other people on Facebook that I might know? Can Facebook read my hotmail contact list even though I don't have a Facebook acct? The message said I might know my sister, Dual, and a couple other people whose email addresses are in my contact list. I CALL SHENANIGANS.

 

[CaptainWacky]

It asks Brian Blessed.

 

[Dr Dave]

Perhaps they have a spy satellite?

 

[Seph]

perhaps it sugests people with more than a certain amount of friends in common with u or something.

 

[Dual]

Someone emailed a Facebook invite to me and I was wondering.. how does Facebook know about other people on Facebook that I might know? Can Facebook read my hotmail contact list even though I don't have a Facebook acct? The message said I might know my sister, Dual, and a couple other people whose email addresses are in my contact list. I CALL SHENANIGANS.

Join and add me!

 

[headvoid]

I would ask DAN BROWN about such matters.

 

[Gagh]

Sorry, DAN BROWN can't come to the phone right now as he's TRANSCENDED TO ANOTHER PLANE OF EXISTENCE. If you'd like to leave a message, Dan will play it back, make that the first chapter of his next 'novel' and get back to you.

 

[Big Dick McGee]

Cassie, how come you're not FB friends with me and LG?

 

[Cassie]

Cause I'm not Facebook friends with anyone! I don't have an acct, that was the point of my question, OK? Facebook knows who's in my hotmail contact list somehow! Otherwise, how do they know I know Dual and my sister? TRICKSY BASTARDS.

 

[Big Dick McGee]

Facebook is the first step to Robot domination of the world's human population. Lady Gaga and Ke$sha are steps 2 and 3.

 

[Fuddlemiff]

One of the steps you can take when you make a Facebook account (or any time thereafter) is to allow the site access to your email contacts so it can check if any of them have profiles. I imagine this is what Dual and your sister did. So... creepily, it's figured out who you have in your contacts list based on your appearance in other peoples'.

 

[Cassie]

OH.. ok yeah that makes sense! I was afraid they were snooping through my contacts somehow.

 

[Dr Dave]

Not yet!

 

[Fuddlemiff]

It's kind of worrying, though. Surely this means that when we let it look at our contacts it isn't just a one-off thing. They must be keeping records for future reference as well? And presumably, if they wanted to, they could take a pretty good stab at mapping the social networks of people who are not, as well as the people who are using their site.

 

[Cassie]

I knew Facebook was evil!

 

[Fuddlemiff]

Let's hope they don't get taken over by a not-too-distant-future fascist government!

 

[CaptainWacky]

So it's Dual's fault as usual.

 

[Mentalist]

It's kind of worrying, though. Surely this means that when we let it look at our contacts it isn't just a one-off thing. They must be keeping records for future reference as well? And presumably, if they wanted to, they could take a pretty good stab at mapping the social networks of people who are not, as well as the people who are using their site.

There is the option to scan your E-Mail and MSN accounts for contacts but Facebook still needs you to input the password for those accounts to do the search.

 

[Tisiphone]

Well, now I've gotta find Dual as well...

 

[Yub]

Once you've found Dual....add me.