The UK’s Information Commissioner’s Office is to enter into discussions with Facebook how users can maintain their privacy and control their data.
The news from the BBC relates to a story broken by Channel 4 News last November detailing how Facebook was being investigated by the ICO after a complaint that he could not remove his account or any of the data – photos, wall posts etc – associated with it. The ICO oversees the implementation of the Data Protection Act.
Dave Evans, Senior Data Protection Practice Manager at the ICO said: “We’ve agreed with Facebook to discuss with them issues around what they do with my information if I wish to deactivate my account”. In addition, he said that the ICO would look at Facebook’s privacy policy, the rights to data the company asserts and the privacy implications of applications embedded in Facebook.
The implications for Facbook are serious but, in theory, unlikely to affect its meteoric growth in the UK.