When Facebook first came into our lives, originally aimed at students, it seemed the perfect forum to wax lyrical about hangovers and drunken tomfoolery.
Over the last 13 years, the Facebook landscape has changed.
Users are now more likely to use it as a platform to share pictures of their kids or go on heated political rants.
The fact Facebook has a lot of information on us still stands, however.
But just how much?
The social media site has been around for well over a decade, meaning many of us probably can’t remember what our original settings or information given was.
There are some steps you can take to discover the extent of the info they’re sharing with advertisers.
Do you know about the Your Categories section?
To access the information contained in this section, follow these steps.
1. Click on the Privacy Shortcuts tab.
2. Click on More Settings.
3. Scroll to the bottom of the page and find Advertss
4. Under Ad Preferences click Your Information
5. Click Your Information, and you’ll be able to see the list details Facebook knows about you.
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They explain, ” We’ve added you to these categories based on information you’ve provided on Facebook and other activity.”
For example, our categories include “millenials” (guilty as charged), “housemate based households” and “close friends of ex-pats.”
The good news is you can wriggle your way our of Facebook’s steely grip and remove these details.
Simply click the X on the right of each category and they will be deleted.
