We already told you about it in August of last year, Facebook wants to be cool again, to recover its lost splendor and for users to once again share everything about their lives on their own walls and those of others. It is a totally legitimate aspiration, of course, we must not forget that for some years it was the great benchmark of social networks, and that the innocence of the average Facebook user in those years made people keep a very complete diary, with the singularity that it was not private, but shared with all your contacts.
We have also spoken, on previous occasions, of how the creation of Mark Zuckerberg was losing its charm for users. Changes in the algorithm that chooses what content it shows us, greater competition and, above all, the plethora of security problems, in which the Cambridge Analytica scandal marked a before and after. This, together with statements by former Meta employees, has meant that today the social network has lost its attractiveness and even interest for many.
The problem is that if you want people to like you again, it’s a condition sine qua non treat it properly, offer it a careful and quality product or service and, of course, not deceive or act with your back to your own community. Otherwise, and no matter how many communication campaigns you carry out to improve your image, sooner or later you will have to face the consequences of your actions. In the end, with few exceptions, everything ends up being known.
The last example of this is found in Phone Arena, and he tells us that Facebook intentionally drains the batteries of its users’ smartphones for testing. It is not something that we hear for the first time, but what makes the difference in this case is that the person who affirms it is George Hayward, a data scientist and former worker of the social network. According to him, he also states that it is a widespread practice in the technology sector, but of which the user is not duly informed, with the risks that this entails.
It may seem like a minor problem, but there are many people whose communications depend exclusively on the smartphone, and therefore need to keep it operational at all times. Be careful, I am not referring to keeping them connected, airplane mode can do wonders when you want to disconnect from the world, but if at any time and for any circumstance you need contact an emergency servicediscovering that the phone has run out of battery for no apparent reason can be a big problem.
According to Hayward’s testimony, the reason for his dismissal was precisely because he refused to participate in this type of test, after making a reflection similar to the one I raised in the previous paragraph. After receiving a document related to this type of actions so that he could become part of them, he chose to confront his superiors to oppose it. After being fired, he wanted to take Meta to court but, due to the contractual conditions of his dismissal, the lawsuit had to be annulled and, instead, an arbitration process was opened that is currently active.
