Are you a pizza or a taco? What is your favorite ice cream flavor? I am sure that you have seen hundreds of this type of quizzes on Facebook that are advertised as “personality tests” but do you know that they are actually bad for you? Personality tests are all over social media, and kids are the ones that fall the most for them. After all, what kid wouldn’t want to see who is the superhero that he resembles the most? Even though these quizzes might seem safe and fun, this is not the case. They are actually used as a tool of the dark arts of politics.
Data leaks such as the infamous Cambridge Analytica fiasco have revealed that companies are using the popular tests to gather private information about you and your family members. This is why you or your kids should never take them. If you don’t know how these quizzes work and how scary they are, then you are doing the right thing by coming to our website. Today I am going to show you everything that you need to know about them.
Do Quizzes Really Collect Data?
These tests are fun, and this is why so many people fall for them. Not just that, but they seem harmless, and no one thinks that their data is being collected. However, this is all made clear when you pay attention to the permissions that quizzes ask. If you click on the “Allow” button for these quizzes, you are unknowingly allowing the developers to store all your answers and analyze them.
“Allowing [quiz name] access will let it pull your profile information, photos, your friends’ info, and other content that it requires to work.” And just beneath the “Allow” button is a statement that says, “By proceeding, you are allowing [quiz name] to access your information and you are agreeing to the Facebook Terms of Use,” says the fine print of these quizzes.
These quizzes are becoming such a massive problem that Facebook felt the need to update its Privacy Update Page in order to warn everyone about them. Here is what Facebook has to say:
“When you use third-party apps, websites or other services that use, or are integrated with, our Services, they may receive information about what you post or share. For example, when you play a game with your Facebook friends or use the Facebook Comment or Share button on a website, the game developer or website may get information about your activities in the game or receive a comment or link that you share from their website on Facebook. In addition, when you download or use such third-party services, they can access your Public Profile, which includes your username or user ID, your age range and country/language, your list of friends, as well as any information that you share with them. Information collected by these apps, websites or integrated services is subject to their own terms and policies.”
Credit Card Fraud
As if the fact that your private data is being stored to be sold by data farms wasn’t scary enough, there also are some quizzes that lead to credit card fraud. There are many quizzes where data collection is not the primary focus, and instead, these quizzes are trying to steal your hard-earned money. The way that they are doing this is by providing various rewards, and to get them, users will need to pay a small fee. What users don’t realize is that when they introduce their card info, all of it will be copied by the scammers.
How Do I Protect My Data?
The first step is to do your research and be weary of all quizzes that require personal information, which is what you are already doing here so congratz for that. The next step is to avoid and report all Facebook quizzes at all costs. Even though the theme of the quiz might be interesting, it’s never a good idea to give it a try.
Another critical piece of advice that I want to share with you is to delete old accounts and, more importantly, update your old passwords. If your passwords are based on your favorite pet or the name of your children for example, you should change your passwords as soon as possible because the scammers will use the info that you provided in the quiz to crack your account.
You should also make sure to check what is the information that a quiz or a Facebook plug-in request before accessing it. Some apps will give you the option to opt-out of these requests and still access their features, but if you are not paying attention, you will end up sharing more information that you want.
