Facebook and More Privacy Concerns

It all boils down to one topic, do not expect privacy with information posed on social media, regardless of the company privacy policy. Just err on the side of caution.

A Federal Court Judge in New York declared yesterday that federal investigators can review your Facebook profile if one of your friends (who has access to your profile) allows them permission to do so. The ruling was part of a New York City racketeering trial where the suspect attempted to rely on the Fourth Amendment to suppress Facebook evidence that led to his indictment.

US District Judge William Pauley III wrote in the discussion section of his ruling:

Where Facebook privacy settings allow viewership of postings by “friends,” the Government may access them through a cooperating witness who is a “friend” without violating the Fourth Amendment. Cf. United States v. Barone, 913 F.2d 46,49 (2d Cir. 1990) (finding that a person does not have a legitimate privacy expectation in telephone calls recorded by the Government with the consent of at least one party on the call.)” (Source: http://gigaom.com)

Full Text of the Ruling Can Be Found At:
http://gigaom.com/2012/08/15/friends-can-share-your-facebook-profile-with-the-government-court-rules/