Rockford BBB Warns of Facebook Quizzes Data-Mining

It may be hard to believe, but taking one of the many Facebook quizzes you see all the time might leave your personal information at risk.

As the ongoing probe into Facebook’s privacy practices continues, Better Business Bureau (BBB) is urging consumers to remain vigilant in protecting their personal information and partake in some social media spring cleaning. BBB reminds consumers that what they share online could be used for illegal or unethical reasons.

Dennis, Horton, Director of the Rockford office of the BBB says that no matter what you call it, it's fraud:

“One of the primary missions of the BBB is to alert and protect consumers from potential fraud. We want all consumers to be aware that an organization as large and influential as Facebook could expose consumers to the dangers of data mining, a practice that can potentially open them up to scammers. We urge consumers to take all necessary efforts to protect themselves and their information online.”

In Cook County the States Attorney has filed a consumer fraud lawsuit against Facebook and the political data-mining firm Cambridge Analytica after news broke last week that the firm misused information from 50 million Facebook users. Additionally, Illinois Attorney Lisa Madigan, along with her counterparts from 37 states, sent a letter to Facebook demanding details about Facebook’s privacy protections for its users.

BBB cautions users to be careful about what they share online:

Profile data, quiz answers, and more can be used to steal your money, passwords, or let a scammer pretend to be you in order to steal someone else’s money. Even seemingly innocent information can be used to build a profile on you that can be sold to anyone trying to influence society.
Social media quizzes – especially popular on Facebook – seem innocent enough. But taking the quiz might mean you are giving away more information about yourself than you originally thought, and that may extend to your Friends, as well.