Facebook is one of the largest social media platforms that offer unique products and services to engage a variety of audience. Nowadays, with the ongoing evolution in internet, user also relies on social networks to not just communicate with others but to also get more opportunities through these digital platform. Users now use social media as an authentic source of income too, along with interacting with multiple brands online.
Over the past years, Facebook has always been surrounded by scandals related to violation of user privacy. Despite the fact that Facebook hired a huge amount of new employees to specifically work on the platform’s security but still there are so many loopholes that go unnoticed. Facebook is a platform that not only violated user privacy in the past but also gave a platform to people spreading misinformation which lead to chaos in the surrounding.
The Facebook app didn’t do anything to secure user information more and only released few updates regarding the issue users were facing with the app draining user’s battery. Well, it’s not the only issue users have to face now. The social media behemoth might be doing something more unethical without user consent.
Without any user consent, Facebook is scanning the system libraries of its Android app users and later on uploads these libraries to the server of the Facebook named Global Library Collector. There is no authentic information regarding the reason behind the collection of metadata of user system libraries to the server. There is no possible way for any user to view the information uploaded from their devices to the servers but maybe Facebook is using it to determine the integrity and compatibility of its system.
If you think that Facebook might be accessing only specified user information then you might be wrong. The Facebook Android app compresses each and every file from the user system’s library before uploading it to the server. This makes sense that Facebook wants to keep the user information’s traffic to a minimum and it also seems that the files Facebook scans from user device are also gathered in a collection for a specific user.
Photo: Getty Images
Read next: Facebook will soon be launching new tools for Messenger specifically designed to help businesses
Over the past years, Facebook has always been surrounded by scandals related to violation of user privacy. Despite the fact that Facebook hired a huge amount of new employees to specifically work on the platform’s security but still there are so many loopholes that go unnoticed. Facebook is a platform that not only violated user privacy in the past but also gave a platform to people spreading misinformation which lead to chaos in the surrounding.
Android Facebook app is doing something behind the user’s back
According to an app researcher Jane Manchun Wong, the Android version of Facebook is using a collector named “Global Library Collector” that gathers user’s system library’s information without the authorization from the user and uploads it to the servers of Facebook.Facebook has always been breaching user’s information
Facebook has been struggling to build trust due to its sketchy data practices. Recently, Facebook Research VPN was spotted collecting user’s information from the phone without user consent and the company was even rewarding people to install its app.The Facebook app didn’t do anything to secure user information more and only released few updates regarding the issue users were facing with the app draining user’s battery. Well, it’s not the only issue users have to face now. The social media behemoth might be doing something more unethical without user consent.
Facebook wants access to your libraries
Wong recently discovered that her Facebook Android app was scanning the phone, collecting information from the phone’s library and then uploads the metadata to Facebook’s server.Without any user consent, Facebook is scanning the system libraries of its Android app users and later on uploads these libraries to the server of the Facebook named Global Library Collector. There is no authentic information regarding the reason behind the collection of metadata of user system libraries to the server. There is no possible way for any user to view the information uploaded from their devices to the servers but maybe Facebook is using it to determine the integrity and compatibility of its system.
If you think that Facebook might be accessing only specified user information then you might be wrong. The Facebook Android app compresses each and every file from the user system’s library before uploading it to the server. This makes sense that Facebook wants to keep the user information’s traffic to a minimum and it also seems that the files Facebook scans from user device are also gathered in a collection for a specific user.
Facebook can upload the entire files of all system libraries to their server through their Android apps— Jane Manchun Wong (@wongmjane) August 30, 2019
The app compresses each system library file using gzip and uploads them to server
Interestingly, the files are uploaded to a specific collection that’s related to my phone pic.twitter.com/YX0S4rmjAG
Bottom Line
There is no official response from Facebook regarding the issue. If this collection of data is aimed at securing user information then there should be a user agreement covering it up otherwise collecting user info without consent is nothing else then the violation of Facebook’s own policies. Facebook is a social network that provides opportunities to millions of user on a daily basis and the security it provides to its user is what helps make the platform trustworthy. If Facebook is using user system libraries as a security measure then Facebook should officially address this issue until then Facebook is in the grey area.
Photo: Getty Images
Read next: Facebook will soon be launching new tools for Messenger specifically designed to help businesses
