With roots of the world wide web deepening into our lives, privacy is becoming vital. Users need to have more control on what they reveal and what they don’t, however, that balance of control seems to be missing. In one such instance, Facebook has been recently accused of revealing the name and personal details of sex workers and porn stars using its social network.
According to a number of online reports, Facebook’s People You May Know feature, has lately been connecting sex workers’ anonymous, client-focused accounts with their personal profiles. While the exact data Facebook uses to determine friend recommendations is unknown, it is believed that the algorithm uses as many as ’100 signals’ from each account. Facebook has denied that it uses third-party app or location data for the feature.
Regarding the same, Gizmodo spoke to a sex worker who has also been apparently hit by the data leak. Going under the alias “Leila”, she explained how her real-life identity had been shared with clients’ smartphones. “The worst nightmare of sex workers is to have your real name out there and Facebook connecting people like this is the harbinger of that nightmare,” she said. “With all the precautions we take and the different phone numbers we use, why the f**k are they showing up?” 
In a separate case, IBTimes reports an instance where the manager of a virtual reality adult cam network, Ela Darling, talked of her own experience after her private account was ‘recommended’ to fans. Darling noted that she had since deleted her personal account to protect both herself and her family from harassment. 
“We’re living in an age where you can weaponize personal information against people,” Darling said. “Facebook isn’t a luxury. It’s a utility in our lives. For something that big to be so secretive and powerful in how it accumulates your information is unnerving.” 
To this, Facebook has responded saying, “We take privacy seriously and of course want to make sure people have a safe and positive experience on Facebook,” a spokesperson said, before later adding: “We want to do our best to prevent these things from happening and we do care about people’s privacy. We fell short here, and we will do better.”
{BGR}