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Facebook Live Location service questions privacy and safety concerns.

Cyber security experts are in turmoil over Facebook’ s new feature Live Location in its Messenger app as they claim it will raise privacy concerns for its users. The Live Location enables to messenger user to share their location and also locate their friends more easily.

This service works by turning on Nearby Friends option on the map that shows the individual’ s location and the estimated point of the arrival to a particular destination. This option can be turned on or off depending on the interest of the user. It provides a 60-minute live window where you can share your location or track your friends.

The downside of this feature is the privacy breach of the users. The 60-minute window opens doors to every possible hacker that uses these geolocation data to track other users which might lead to stalking, identity theft, use of personal information, etc. This information can also be used by Facebook.

George Avetisov, CEO of the biometric security firm HYPR, pointed out that there are privacy concerns for both individuals and corporations.

“ For one, opting in informs Facebook where you are, because you' re giving it access to your location. Acquaintances &mdash imagine a coworker who sees you at a competitor' s office &mdash also could be accidentally informed where you are at times when you may not want them knowing. A 60-minute live location session presents a fairly broad picture of your workday,” he told SC Media.

But there are people who have grown accustomed to the Location service. Alex Heid, chief research officer for security scorecard says that there are many apps which use this functionality, such as video games, restaurant locators and dating apps. He assures that since it is official Facebook product there will be privacy settings in place.

Since this feature can be turned on or off manually, the user can choose to off or share their location to other friends. This feature is being criticized with both pros and cons. The final call rests with the Facebook users which comprises of 1.23 billion monthly users.

Tag : Facebook messenger
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