Fact Check: Viral message claiming Facebook will make private photos public is false

Hyderabad: A message has been going viral on Facebook claiming that all private photos of users will be made public. It also claims that the photos can be used in court cases as proof.

The message reads, "Don't forget tomorrow starts the new Facebook rule where they can use your photos. Don't forget the Deadline is today!!! It can be used in court cases in litigation against you. Everything you've ever posted becomes public from today - even messages that have been deleted. It costs nothing for a simple copy and paste, better safe than sorry."

The message further asks people to copy and paste the message so that Facebook doesn't make their private images public. "I do not give Facebook or any entities associated with Facebook permission to use my pictures, information, messages or posts, both past, and future. With this statement, I give notice to Facebook that it is strictly forbidden to disclose, copy, distribute, or take any other action against me based on this profile and/or its contents including the personal information contained in my profile. The violation of privacy can be punished by law NOTE: Facebook is now a public entity. All members must post a note like this," it reads.

Fact Check:

The message has been circulating on the Internet for a long time. Last year in July, Mirror UK published an article stating that the message was a hoax.

According to Facebook terms and services, "...if you share a photo on Facebook, you give us permission to store, copy, and share it with others (again, consistent with your settings) such as service providers that support our service or other Facebook Products you use. This license will end when your content is deleted from our systems."

This means if we deactivate our account, Facebook will delete the stored data from our profile. Apart from that, the author, i.e. the one who posts the article, owns the copyright of the content. Facebook terms also state, "We don't sell your personal data to advertisers, and we don't share information that directly identifies you (such as your name, email address, or other contact information) with advertisers unless you give us specific permission."

So posting the viral message on your wall will not change Facebook's policies. Hence, the message is fake.