Facebook outlines changes ahead of GDPR

In changes announced in a blog post, the social network will ask people to review information about targeted advertising and consent to whether or not they want to receive targeted ads based on data from third parties, such as websites and apps that use the site’s ‘like’ button.

Users will also be asked if they want to continue sharing sensitive profile information, such as religious or political views, with Facebook. Additionally, the company is seeking explicit consent for the use of facial recognition technology, which has been in use for over six years. Users will now have the option of switching off the technology, which is used to suggest friends when tagging photos.

The company will ask users to agree to an updated set of terms and conditions and data policy, but says it is not seeking “new rights to collect, use or share your data on Facebook”.

Users in the EU will start to see these requests this week, to comply with GDPR, with the company saying it will roll out to users in the rest of the world at a later date.

"While the substance of our data policy is the same globally, people in the EU will see specific details relevant only to people who live there, like how to contact our Data Protection Officer under GDPR," the company said in the blog post. "We want to be clear that there is nothing different about the controls and protections we offer around the world."