An online quiz that shows the words you use most on Facebook as a word "cloud" has gone viral.
And it's a great reminder of why you should be wary of giving out your login details to seemingly fun games. Comparitech investigated and discovered that not only does the game collect your name, but also your birthday, city, education details, all Likes, photos, browser, language, IP address and even your friends list if you log in via Facebook.
Not a small amount for a simple game, right? If you agree, in the future you should think more seriously about entering a similar quiz because most of them require the same elements.
Some games or apps allow you to choose which information you want to share. If you're lucky, you can give as little information as possible and still be able to play.
The real problem is that like any other data collector, these games collect data for a reason. Vonvon.me, the company that created the quiz Your Most Used Words on Facebook, notes in its Privacy Policy that if you log in to Facebook, the company will be able to use your information even if you deactivate your account! You also allow it to store your data on all its servers around the world, even in places where privacy is not protected by law. Vonvon claims that it will not share your personal information with third parties without notifying you, but at the same time, its Privacy Policy is a way of notifying you. If you have not read the Policy and click OK, it is like allowing the company to sell or share your information.
To get rid of older apps and games that you have logged into with your details, you can click the icon in the top right of Facebook and select “See more settings.” In the apps section, you can see the “Logged in with Facebook” list and there, click x on any app you don’t trust or recognize.
Even if you don't care that much about your personal information, think about the privacy of your friends since quizzes like the one above and other applications collect their information as well.
