By Tyler Sutherland
We’ll find out today what Facebook will do in response to a complaint from Canada’s privacy commissioner.
Jennifer Stoddart — Federal privacy commissioner — has raised concern over the way the social networking site handles members’ information. According to Stoddart, Facebook keeps the private information indefinitely, even after accounts are closed.
What happens with Facebook will be a precedent for other similar sites who collect the private information of Canadians. As some tech experts have noted, Facebook was targeted because they are among the biggest and most powerful.
Sites like MySpace, Twitter and Linkedin will need to adjust their privacy practices if new guidelines for social networking sites come into effect in Canada.
UPDATE: Facebook has agreed to the proposed changes that will bring the site into compliance with Canadian law. Part of the changes include no longer allowing application developers to access personal member information. The amended policies will begin being worked on immediately, and be fully completed over the next 12 months.
— With files from CNET
