Daily Minute Master Series – November 6, 2019

Social Media

Facebook Has Discovered Another Data Access Issue, This Time Within Groups

This week, on the Facebook Developer blog, the company has revealed that a flaw in its Groups API may have enabled up to 100 app partners to access group member information, like names and profile pictures, in connection with group activity. Facebook made significant changes to its APIs to limit access in April 2018. As a result, Facebook says that up to 100 developers may have been able to access this information since it announced restrictions to the Groups API. Facebook says that the apps which could have accessed this information were primarily social media management and video streaming apps. Trust in Facebook is already at all-time lows, and every time there’s another issue like this, it not only reminds people of Facebook’s previous issues, but it also raises the specter of what else could be. If they’ve just now detected yet another flaw, surely there are other ways developers are still able to extract Facebook data.

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Facebook’s Testing an Improved Facial Recognition Process for Identity Verification

Facebook is reportedly developing a new process for a facial recognition system which would enable users to confirm their identity by sharing a video selfie. The new process would guide users through a process of angling their head around in different angles, in order for Facebook to get a full record of what the user looks like. As noted by TechCrunch at the time, the option could be particularly helpful if you’re unable to receive a two-factor authentication SMS, or if you lose access to your email account, adding another way to verify your identity and unlock your Facebook profile. But then again, it does feel a little creepy, especially given Facebook’s current reputation around personal data use and sharing. There’s no word on whether or when this feature will be released, but as noted, Facebook has been working on it for years, and from the screenshots, it does look fairly well along in its development. 

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Facebook Launches Next Steps in Full Messaging Encryption Plan

Facebook looks set to push ahead with its plan to add end-to-end encryption in all its messaging apps, with the company planning to announce the next phase of its process at a tech conference in Lisbon this week. The new section of the Messenger website provides simple overviews on how to use the various Messenger privacy functions, while it also includes links to Facebook’s policies and documentation on platform rules and systems. By raising awareness of such tools – specifically the existing encryption option – Facebook will be hoping to increase usage, and subsequently move further towards enabling full encryption in all messaging interactions. The next step then will be to integrate Messenger, WhatsApp and Instagram messaging into a single, cross-connected platform, Facebook’s next big messaging play.

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Marketing

Google extends Shopping ads to more YouTube inventory

Google is expanding the visibility of Shopping campaigns on YouTube. Showcase Shopping ads are also going more places and opening up to more categories. Finally, sitelinks are coming to TrueView for action ads, the company announced Tuesday. Shopping ads can now show on the YouTube home feed and YouTube search results. On mobile, users will be able to scroll through a carousel of “Suggested Products” that will appear between videos on the home page or at the top of the search results. Google has long made the argument that users display shopping intent on YouTube just as they do on Google Search. It first introduced TrueView for Shopping and Shopping ads on YouTube in 2015. The company says it has seen watch time for “holiday shopping” videos on YouTube increase by more than 4X in the past two years, for example. These announcements are further indication of the power of Shopping ads and Google’s eagerness to keep finding more places to show them.

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