Second Software Bug Resulted from Facebook Glitch in Less Than a Month
At least 800,000 users of Facebook have been experiencing yet another glitch in the company’s network. Such glitch temporarily removed the block function from users between 29 May and 5 June. This Facebook glitch is nothing new, as the company has experienced its first encounter in less than a month.
Back in June, Facebook revealed that another software bug had resulted in some of its users posting publicly by default. This happened despite the previous privacy settings they may have added to their profile postings.
Users of both Facebook and the Messenger app are having concerns regarding this incident. Meanwhile, the company stated that it would inform the affected users with a pop-up message. They would receive notifications on Facebook that will encourage the affected users to recheck their blocked lists.
How Does Facebook’s Block Function Work?
Facebook’s block function works by preventing the blocked user from viewing posts in the blocker’s profile. Such a user will not be able to contact the blocker through the platform’s Messenger app or be able to connect to the blocker as a friend. When a user moves to block someone on Facebook, they are automatically removing them as a friend from their contact list too.
Erin Egan, Facebook’s Chief Privacy Officer, has apologized for the incident. He stated that the company knows how important being able to block someone on Facebook is. In a blog post, Egan said that the individual would not be able to see the content he shared with friends. However, users may still view the content for a broader audience.
Egan’s blog post detailed that 83% of the affected users had “only one person they had blocked temporarily unblocked.” This glitch is another incident in an already ongoing privacy crisis issue that Facebook has been dealing with.
What Happens Now?
Earlier this year, Facebook Chief Mark Zuckerberg had previously dealt with the European Parliament and US Congress. The Cambridge Analytica scandal made Zuckerberg answer concerns regarding the breach of users’ personal data and information. Facebook had later disclosed that 110 third parties had more access to personal data than what the company realized.
Facebook assured its users that the glitch might have temporarily unblocked someone they had previously blocked. Unfortunately, it did not restore the friendships or reconnect through Facebook. However, the individual would have been able to contact the blocker via Facebook Messenger while the glitch was taking place.
The Facebook glitch may have affected only a small part of the 2.4 billion users worldwide. Still, it’s an underlying issue especially for those who had relied on the block function to escape harassment on social media. Worse, it could slow down the progress of those who want to do marketing on Facebook.
