After days of testifying in front of the US Congress, Mark Zuckerberg has revealed plenty of information, as well as dodging some questions. As such, while Zuckerberg and Facebook continue to work with authorities, they’re also releasing some information regarding how they get data from other websites and apps, how they use said data as well as the how much control we have over our own data. This information comes straight from David Baser, the Product Management Director of Facebook.

When does Facebook get data about people from other websites and apps?

According to Baser, numerous websites and apps use Facebook services for content and ads. These services are social plugins, login features, Facebook Analytics, and Facebook ads and measurement tools.

Whenever someone uses an app or site that has these services, the social media giant receives this data. This happens regardless of whether or not you’re logged into Facebook or even have an account. It happens because these sites and apps cannot recognise if the user does or doesn’t have an account with the social media.

With so many companies using these services, Facebook will also have a lot of data on their hands. Other social medias such as Twitter and LinkedIn also have these services. Google also has an analytics feature. And perhaps most importantly, Baser states that websites and apps send data to all these companies that have their services used, not just them.

What kind of data does Facebook get from these websites and apps?

Baser explains that your browser sends a request to the site’s server whenever you visit a website. It shares your IP address so the website knows where to send the site content to. The website also gets information about your browser and your operating system; this is because not all browsers and devices support the same features. Then there’s also cookies, which tell websites if you’ve visited before.

A website typically sends two things back to your browser: first, content from that site; and second, instructions for the browser to send your request to the other companies providing content or services on the site. Essentially, your browser sends the same information to Facebook as the website. Facebook also gets data about what sites and apps you’re using so that it knows what to give you.

This happens with other services too; Youtube also receives this data if the website is using Youtube’s services.

How does Facebook use the data it receives from other websites and apps?

There are three main ways the tech giant uses the data it gets, according to Baser. These are providing their services to these sites or apps, increasing their security and improving their services. Baser makes it doubly clear that they don’t sell people’s data.

Facebook uses our IP addresses, system info, and address of the site or app you’re using to make social plugins and login features work. Meanwhile, cookies let them know if you’re logged in, making it easier to share content onto social media.

Furthermore, there’s also Facebook Analytics. It gives websites and apps data about how they are used. IP addresses and system info provides info about the demographic of their users. Cookies meanwhile help count the number of unique visitors.

The Facebook Audience Network lets websites and apps show ads from Facebook advertisers. People with Facebook accounts will see ads that are also targeting them on the social media. Those without will get an ad suggesting them to sign up with them for an account. Advertisers can also choose to embed the Facebook Pixel to their site or app. This gives them statistics regarding the engagement that their ads receive. No personal information is shared during this process.

Facebook needs the data from websites and apps for security reasons. Baser adds, “Receiving data about the sites a particular browser has visited can help us identify bad actors. If someone tries to log into your account using an IP address from a different country, we might ask some questions to verify it’s you.”

He also clarifies that they use the data they get to improve content and ads. “If you visit a lot of sports sites that use our services, you might see sports-related stories higher up in your News Feed. If you’ve looked at travel sites, we can show you ads for hotels and rental cars,” says Baser.

What controls do you have?

Facebook provides you multiple ways to control how your data is used to provide more relevant content and ads. One way is through your News Feed preferences. You can choose what content you want to see first, and hide what you don’t. Users could also opt to see things on the News Feed chronologically instead of what their algorithms think they want to see.

You could also could also change your ad preferences settings. You may remove any specific advertisers from your News Feed. Alternatively, you could also opt out of these ads entirely, removing ads based of data from other sites and opts. There’s also options to remove ads on other sites and apps based off your Facebook activity too.

“Whether it’s information from apps and websites, or information you share with other people on Facebook, we want to put you in control — and be transparent about what information Facebook has and how it is used. We’ll keep working to make that easier,” says Baser.

If you’d like to read the full statement from Baser yourself, you can click here.