Resist the urge to get on this status bandwagon, people. Or if it’s too late, then get ready to hit the ‘delete’ button.
A viral hoax message has again been doing the rounds on Facebook pages around the world overnight.
You may have noticed it in your feeds. It reads:
Due to the fact that Facebook has chosen to involve software that will allow the theft of my personal information, I state: at this date of January 4, 2015, in response to the new guidelines of Facebook, pursuant to articles L.111, 112 and 113 of the code of intellectual property, I declare that my rights are attached to all my personal data drawings, paintings, photos, video, texts etc. published on my profile and my page. For commercial use of the foregoing my written consent is required at all times.
Those who read this text can do a copy/paste on their Facebook wall. This will allow them to place themselves under the protection of copyright. By this statement, I tell Facebook that it is strictly forbidden to disclose, copy, distribute, broadcast, or take any other action against me on the basis of this profile and or its content. The actions mentioned above also apply to employees, students, agents and or other personnel under the direction of Facebook.
The content of my profile contains private information. The violation of my privacy is punishable by law (UCC 1-308 1-308 1-103 and the Rome Statute).
Facebook is now an open capital entity. All members are invited to publish a notice of this kind, or if they prefer, you can copy and paste this version.
If you have not published this statement at least once, you tacitly allow the use of elements such as your photos as well as the information contained in the profile update.
Another similar message says that the only way for users to remain”under protection of copyright laws” is to copy and paste a declaration onto their profiles.
These hoaxes have no legal standing.
But they are one hundred percent not true, or credible. Hoax debunking website Snopes has put the rumours to rest, clarifying that every Facebook user is already covered by copyright laws– status update declaring you would like to be or not.
In their Statement of Rights and Responsibilities, Facebook claims: “You own all of the content and information you post on Facebook, and you can control how it is shared through your privacy and application settings.”
Facebook spokesman Andrew Noyes has also released a statement, saying: “We wanted to take a moment to remind you of the facts — when you post things like photos to Facebook, we do not own them.
“Under our terms you grant Facebook permission to use, distribute, and share the things you post, subject to the terms and applicable privacy settings. Anyone who uses Facebook owns and controls the content and information they post, as stated in our terms. They control how that content and information is shared. That is our policy, and it always has been.”
If the hoax seems familiar, that’s because it is. A similar hoax did the rounds in 2012, again convincing users that if they refused to post the status on their walls they would not be protected against Facebook using their personal information and images.
If Facebook users have issues with the websites privacy policy, Snopes suggests they have limited options. These include declining to sign up for a Facebook account, bilaterally negotiating a modified policy with Facebook, lobbying for Facebook to amend its policies through its Facebook Site Governance section, or cancelling your Facebook account.
The bottom line? Unfortunately a quick status update will definitely, most certainly not change your legal protections when it comes to using social media.
Through privacy settings though you can regain some limited control of how accessible your information is to others.
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