Sign up for a new account or log in here:
also @ TechSpot: AMD A4-5000 Review: the affordable ultraportable APU
As we said it would, Google has struck back in the recent war it started against Facebook over contact data. Now, when you try to export your contacts to Facebook, Google gives you a big warning that calls Facebook a trap, in attempt to convince you not to take your contacts to the social network.
Last week, Google banned Facebook from accessing Gmail contact data by tweaking its the Terms of Service for its Google Contacts Data API so that websites which access Google Contacts will need to offer access to their data too. Facebook has never allowed users to export their contact information, but it still wants its new users to find out whether their Gmail contacts also have Facebook accounts, so earlier this week it implemented a workaround. The world's biggest social network now tells new users to use a Google feature that helps them download their own data, and then instructs them to upload the file back to Facebook. Now, Google is showing the following message when new Facebook users come to export their contact data from Gmail:
The warning can be viewed by anyone on this page (via ReadWriteWeb). If you can't see the image above or navigate to the link, we've pasted the corresponding text below:
| quote: Hold on a second. Are you super sure you want to import your contact information for your friends into a service that won't let you get it out? Here's the not-so-fine print. You have been directed to this page from a site that doesn't allow you to re-export your data to other services, essentially locking up your contact data about your friends. So once you import your data there, you won't be able to get it out. We think this is an important thing for you to know before you import your data there. Although we strongly disagree with this data protectionism, the choice is yours. Because, after all, you should have control over your data. Of course, you are always free to download your contacts using the export feature in Google Contacts. This public service announcement is brought to you on behalf of your friends in Google Contacts. [__] Register a complaint over data protectionism. (Google will not record or display your name or email address.) [__] Proceed with exporting this data. I recognize that once it's been imported to another service, that service may not allow me to export it back out. Select one or more options. Cancel and go back |
User Comments: 58
Got something to say? Post a comment-
FB fail. GJ Google.
-
Although Google is a huge company that withholds so much personal information about so many people, they are much more transparent than Facebook, and one can opt out of pretty much anything that collects information, so when it comes to this Facebook x Google thing, I lean more towards Google on this.
Also I just read something somewhere about rumors touting Facebook Email..o>O
-
Good fightback from two internet giants.
-
windmill007 said:
Google is starting to sound like a bunch of cry babies. I wish they would just embrace facebook. Google can't rule everything and we would have much better Google services if it integrated into facebook.
whats wrong with what google is doing? they aren't being cry babies, they're just taking the common decency to do what facebook won't, warning you about the fine print. it's not like they're restricting u from doing what u want. u can still import yur data to facebook so i don't see what the problem is.
-
Timonius said:
And now Facebook entices users to grab contacts from outlook....hmmmm....
-
great move for google. just goes to show their concern for the safety and privacy of its users. i loled at "are you super sure". still, the users still have the option to do sio. i just hope they care more about their personal information as much as google
-
3 reasons why I don't subscribe to social networking sites like Facebook. One, there is a very high probability that your personal information will be sold to third parties. Two, whatever personal information that the site doesn't actually sell to other parties, is not adequately protected from hackers, identity thieves, etc. And lastly, anything that you post in these sites can never be completely and totally erased or deleted. The information will always reside in a server somewhere on the internet.
-
They both are doing nothing but just making a joke of themselves.
Most Popular
| Trending | Featured |
Featured on Keyboards
Subscribe to TechSpot
Get free exclusive content, learn about new features and breaking tech news.