Meta introduces Link History feature to Facebook mobile app

Facebook has introduced a new "Link History" feature, which generates a dedicated repository of every links you click on in the Facebook mobile app. Users can opt out, however Link History is enabled by default, and the data is utilized to provide tailored advertisements. As politicians implement new technology legislation and Apple and Google tighten privacy safeguards, Meta is doubling down and looking for new methods to protect its data collecting empire.

The firm promotes Link History as a valuable service for consumers "with all of your browsing activity saved in one place," rather than another technique to track your behavior. With the new setting, you'll "never lose a link again," Facebook claims in a pop-up pushing users to accept the new monitoring approach. According to the firm, "when you allow link history, we may use your information to improve your ads across Meta technologies."

If you disable the setting, Facebook guarantees to remove the Link History it has produced for you within 90 days. Link History isn't available everywhere, according to a Facebook support website. According to the firm, it will be implemented internationally "over time."

In some ways, this improves privacy, but the setting raises more problems than it answers. The company's internet surveillance apparatus has always kept track of the links you click on, and this is the first time users have had any access or control over this aspect of the company's online espionage equipment. In other words, Meta is just requesting permission from users for a type of tracking that it has been employing for over a decade. Aside from that, there are a few ways this option might give consumers the appearance of privacy that Meta does not provide.