The scourge of Facebook

[dtaai-maai]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/technology-58809589

The headline is: Facebook and Instagram outage: How did it affect influencers?

I haven't looked at the link, but my question is: Who cares?

[handdrummer]

As usual, the answer to complaints about social media is to stop using it.

How many friends, that you've never met and don't know do you need?

Re maximizing profits over whatever; isn't that what nearly all companies do? Isn't the object of business to make a profit? I'm not condoning ruthlessness or immorality, just saying what it is.

[buksida]

Re maximizing profits over whatever; isn't that what nearly all companies do? Isn't the object of business to make a profit? I'm not condoning ruthlessness or immorality, just saying what it is.

I think you're missing the point here. FB profits by causing misery to others as the whistleblower proved - most companies offer a worthwhile service or product. FB is akin to an internet virus that churns out spam, scams, freeloading, fake news, racism, a torrent of advertising, biased 'news' bubbles, and causes no end of grief around the world.

Yes, it is optional and we can choose not to use it, but the youth of today may not have that willpower just yet.

[Big Boy]

Just for info for anybody that has a business page on Facebook. The recent outage has set many business settings as Temporarily Closed. It is easily rectified, but businesses may be wondering why nobody is walking through their doors. 2 of my son's business pages were affected, and I helped a local restaurant sort the problem earlier today.

[handdrummer]

Re maximizing profits over whatever; isn't that what nearly all companies do? Isn't the object of business to make a profit? I'm not condoning ruthlessness or immorality, just saying what it is.

I think you're missing the point here. FB profits by causing misery to others as the whistleblower proved - most companies offer a worthwhile service or product. FB is akin to an internet virus that churns out spam, scams, freeloading, fake news, racism, a torrent of advertising, biased 'news' bubbles, and causes no end of grief around the world.

Yes, it is optional and we can choose not to use it, but the youth of today may not have that willpower just yet.

Does Facebook have any redeeming qualities?

I've seen those negatives about Facebook on many internet sites.

[buksida]

Does Facebook have any redeeming qualities?

It must have for the millions of narcissists that are addicted to it, but then those addicted to yaba would also tout its "redeeming qualities" (which are quite similar to FB's).

[lindosfan1]

Facebook does have some good points.
1. Keeping in touch with friends and relations around the world, saves money on postage, and is instant.
2. Hobbies I belong to 3 photography groups, also you see pictures posted which inspire you to visit them.
3 Adverts I block them or ignore them.
4. Can talk to anybody free, video or voice.
5 Exforces group keep in touch and often help each other.
Nothing is perfect in this world but, I do not have problems with facebook. Tiktok, instagram, twitter,tried the last 2 not for me so I ignore them. The rest cannot be bothered.

[huahin4ever]

Facebook does have some good points.
4. Can talk to anybody free, video or voice.

You do not need FB for this (I assume you are referring to Messenger?). I helped a friend to activate Messenger without having FB. He was thrilled that he could use Messenger and not have an account on FB. The only requirement is that you have to register on Messenger with a mobile phone number.

[lindosfan1]

Facebook does have some good points.
4. Can talk to anybody free, video or voice.

You do not need FB for this (I assume you are referring to Messenger?). I helped a friend to activate Messenger without having FB. He was thrilled that he could use Messenger and not have an account on FB. The only requirement is that you have to register on Messenger with a mobile phone number.

Easier on facebook do not have to register my mobile

[buksida]

Likewise, I have only kept Messenger Lite on the phone as some people use only that for messaging, you can use it without registering your mobile if you open a blank FB account. The full Facebook app will eat all of your storage, monitor your other apps, drain your battery, gorge on your personal and location data, bombard you with spam, increase the risk of malware, and generally behave like a virus so it is not getting anywhere near my device.

[buksida]

Facebook grapples with another global outage
Facebook on Friday said users around the world again had problems accessing its services for hours due to a tweak of its system, just days after a massive outage caused in a similar fashion.

"Sincere apologies to anyone who wasn’t able to access our products in the last couple of hours," a Facebook spokesperson told AFP about 21:30 GMT.

"We fixed the issue, and everything should be back to normal now."

Website trouble tracker DownDetector showed spikes in reports of problems accessing or using Facebook and its photo-centric Instagram network as well as Messenger and WhatsApp starting about three hours earlier.

https://www.bangkokpost.com/world/21951 ... bal-outage

Now if they just left it off the world would be a brighter place ...

[buksida]

This could go in the online shopping thread as there are a lot of fakes on Lazada, but as usual, Facebook takes the prize ...


New normal in Thailand sees spike in complaints from online shoppers
The hotline is operated by the Digital Economy and Society Ministry’s Electronic Transactions Development Agency (ETDA), which works alongside the police High-Tech Crime Division and other agencies to prevent cybercrimes.

“Complaints this year have risen 29 per cent compared to the same period last year. Most of the complaints [82.4 per cent] were related to Facebook transactions, followed by 4.6 per cent against general websites and 4.3 per cent against transactions on Instagram,” she said.

https://www.nationthailand.com/in-focus/40007337

[buksida]

Senate Banking Committee Democrats call on Facebook to stop launch of Diem and Novi
Hours after Facebook went live this morning with its digital wallet Novi, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and four other Senators from her party sent a warning shot at the company’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg, demanding that he "immediately discontinue" the program.

https://decrypt.co/83851/elizabeth-warr ... allet-novi

Some scathing words in that letter: https://www.schatz.senate.gov/imo/media ... n_diem.pdf

Time and again, Facebook has made conscious business decisions to continue with actions that have harmed its users and the broader society. Facebook cannot be trusted to manage a payment system or digital currency when its existing ability to manage risks and keep consumers safe has proven wholly insufficient.

[handdrummer]

Is it mandatory that users of facebook use its digital wallet? If not, it's a choice. Do people need to be protected from themselves?

[buksida]

I think you're missing the point (again). The politicians are concerned that FB would have control over a potentially huge monetary flow, and if it does with that what it has done with customers' personal data, there are likely to be very big problems down the line.

For once, I agree with the politicians. FB can't be trusted to be a global bank (but then neither can the global banks).