For the second time in a week Facebook users received an error message when trying to access their accounts on Monday afternoon. Also, Facebook privacy status hoax resurfaces again, fills news feeds.
Facebook became unavailable for some of its users around 3pm EDT Monday, and remained inaccessible for over an hour. Many users took to Twitter to complain about the outage. However, other users were reporting that the service remained accessible both on the web and via mobile. A Facebook spokesperson acknowledged the outage, and said the company is working on getting things up and running again. Facebook has struggled with downtime issues in recent weeks, with Venturebeat reporting three outages in the last 11 days alone.
On another note, users of the world’s largest social network were inundated Monday with messages on their news feeds reposted by friends that warn if they don’t act fast, Facebook will be allowed to infringe on their privacy. One of the hoaxes, which resurfaces every couple of years, warns users to post what sounds like a legally binding statement to their feeds that prohibits Facebook from using their photos, content or personal information without users’ permission. Another hoax says users can protect their privacy by purchasing a $5.99 month subscription to ensure that their posts stay private. The hoax dates as far back as November 2012, when Facebook noticed that status becoming so widespread, the social networking site released a statement seeking to clarify. But Facebook has been trying to clear up the confusion, publishing an updated version of its privacy policy last year that tries to boil down the complex legalese into readable English.
sources: cnet.com; myfox8.com; variety.com