Facebook Simplifies Privacy Policy

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Lengthy legalese is often confusing. This is just the state of Facebook’s current privacy policy. It’s no surprise when go up in arms whenever they discover that the Facebook privacy policy sometimes doesn’t protect their privacy, at all. This is about to change.

If you were given a choice between a 5,800-word, 9-section privacy policy and one that’s more concise and clearly-stated, which one would you prefer? Of course, the lengthy document will be more detailed, and will cover all bases. But people will tend to miss certain pieces of information that might be important.

In the aim of making its privacy policy more accessible to more users, Facebook is simplifying its policy by turning it into an FAQ-type format, but still retaining the original content in spirit. The new policy is in the works, but from how it currently looks, it’s like an FAQ that offers a bit more interactivity. You get to choose the main points of your inquiry, like “Your information and how it is used,” and “Minors and Safety,” and the items can actually teach you how to make modifications to your privacy settings as needed.

• It should be easy to understand, even when the concepts are complicated, or it is of no use to anyone.
• It should be visual and interactive, because that’s the way people use the web today.
• It should focus on the questions people who use Facebook are most likely to ask, because that makes it relevant.

The old policy will still be in place as Facebook’s official privacy policy, but the new one will serve as an easier-to-understand alternative. You can check out the new format, which is currently in development, at www.facebook.com/about/privacy.