Facebook (Meta) Terms of Service & Privacy Policy
Bad
One of the most invasive data collection ecosystems on the internet, tracking you across apps and the web.
Source: https://www.facebook.com/terms.php
Content & Activity
Every post, photo, video, message, comment, reaction, group interaction, marketplace listing, and story you create or engage with.
Cross-Platform Tracking
Activity across Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger, and Threads is combined into a unified profile.
Off-Platform Activity
Websites and apps that use Meta pixels, login buttons, or ad tools report your activity back to Meta.
Device & Network Data
Device hardware, OS, battery level, signal strength, available storage, Bluetooth signals, nearby Wi-Fi networks, and GPS location.
Face & Voice Data
Facial recognition data from photos and videos, voice data from audio features when enabled.
Targeted Advertising
Your data powers one of the largest ad networks in the world. Advertisers can target you by demographics, interests, behaviors, and lookalike audiences.
Cross-App Data Merging
Data from Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Messenger is combined to build comprehensive behavioral profiles.
Third-Party Data Sharing
Data is shared with advertisers, analytics partners, measurement companies, and app developers in the Meta ecosystem.
AI Training & Research
Public posts and interactions may be used to train Meta's AI models including Llama and Meta AI assistant.
Broad Content License
HIGH RISK“You grant us a non-exclusive, transferable, sub-licensable, royalty-free, and worldwide license to host, use, distribute, modify, run, copy, publicly perform or display, translate, and create derivative works of your content.”
This means: Meta can do almost anything with your photos, videos, and posts — including letting other companies use them. This applies globally and costs them nothing.
Data Usage Beyond the Platform
HIGH RISK“We use information about you across our Products and features for the purposes described in this policy.”
This means: What you do on Facebook follows you to Instagram, WhatsApp, Messenger, and wherever else Meta operates. There's no firewall between services.
Algorithmic Profiling
HIGH RISK“We use the information we collect to personalize features and content and make suggestions for you.”
This means: Meta builds a detailed psychological profile to predict your behavior, influence what you see, and maximize time spent on their platforms.
Delete your account
Yes — account deletion is available but takes up to 90 days to fully process. Some data may be retained in backups.
Data retention
Meta retains data for 'as long as necessary' and some data survives account deletion in anonymized or aggregated form.
Data portability
Download Your Information tool available. Supports data transfer to other services via the Data Transfer Project.
Off-platform tracking via Meta Pixel
Millions of websites send your browsing data to Meta even when you're not using Facebook. This creates a shadow profile of your entire internet activity.
Industry context: Google has similar reach with Analytics, but Meta's pixel network is specifically designed for ad targeting rather than website analytics.
Cross-platform data merging across Meta family
Your WhatsApp contacts, Instagram browsing, Facebook likes, and Messenger conversations are all merged. You can't use one service without feeding data to all others.
Industry context: Google merges data across services too, but Meta's combination of private messaging + social + photo sharing creates an unusually intimate profile.
90-day deletion delay with backup retention
Even after you decide to leave, Meta keeps your data for months. Some information may persist indefinitely in 'anonymized' form that could potentially be re-identified.
Industry context: Most services delete within 30 days. Meta's 90-day window is among the longest in the industry.
Facial recognition data collection
Meta has collected one of the largest facial recognition datasets in history. Even if the feature is 'off,' the infrastructure and historical data remain.
Industry context: Most social platforms have avoided facial recognition entirely due to privacy lawsuits. Meta paid $1.4 billion to settle an Illinois biometric privacy case.
Facebook's terms enable one of the most comprehensive personal data collection operations ever built. Data is gathered across every Meta app, across the web via pixels, and used primarily to power advertising. Leaving is slow and incomplete. If you use Facebook, assume everything you do — and much of what you do elsewhere online — is tracked and monetized.
Want to analyze a different service? Analyze any TOS →