Today at f8, Facebook launched Anonymous Login, which they are touting as a new way to log into apps without sharing any personal information from Facebook.Facebook also announced a new version of Facebook Login with better privacy controls.
These new features have been designed to give users more control over the personal information apps receive.
Anonymous Login
Anonymous Login is a solution for users who want to try out an app but don’t want to share any personal information with Facebook. For example, if you’re using Flipbook for the first time you can anonymously login via Facebook just to try it out and see if you like it. You can decide later if you want to share additional information with the app.
Here is a little video showing how it works:
New Facebook Login
Facebook has redesigned the experience of logging into apps in another way by letting you pick and choose exactly what information gets shared. You can select the data an app gets by unchecking categories of information, line by line, to share as much or as little as you want.
The new Facebook Login also won’t post to Facebook without permission. Facebook will soon start reviewing new apps that use Facebook Login to help ensure they only ask for information that’s actually needed and aren’t posting anything back to Facebook without people’s explicit permission.
This feature will be rolling out over the next few months.
A Redesigned App Control Panel
After people log in to apps using Facebook they will be provided with an easy way to keep track of their Facebook-connected apps. Facebook announced a newly designed dashboard where people can see a list of apps they use, manage specific permissions, or remove apps entirely. This feature will be rolling out over the coming weeks.
Will any of these changes make you feel more secure about logging into an app via Facebook? I’m interested to hear your thoughts.
