Quitting social media is easier said than done.
Some social networks have come under scrutiny over privacy and data protection issues. It raises the question, at what point do the risks outweigh the benefits of using social media?
Sure you get to stay “connected” with your family and friends by checking out their feeds every now and then but is it worth your data being sold or accessed?
Despite all of the controversies, including the Cambridge Analytica scandal and data breaches, surrounding Facebook, it seems some people would need quite the payout before they would consider removing themselves from the platform.
Researchers found that the average Facebook user would require more than $1,000 to deactivate their account for one year. That’s quite a bit of money for a free service.
“While the measurable impact Facebook and other free online services have on the economy may be small, our results show that the benefits these services provide for their users are large.”
It seems people are still willing to use services like Facebook despite the number of recent scandals and controversies. One reason may be the feeling of being left out of the loop since so many of our family and friends have an account. If we chose to delete our account, how would we stay “connected” to our closest friends?
One could argue if they are as close as you consider them to be, do you really need Facebook to stay in touch? Wouldn’t you already know more than what is being presented on that person’s feed?
Yet, many of us either get close to pushing the deactivation button or returning a short time later because they feel out of touch with what’s going on.
This gives Facebook some leverage on how much it can get away with.
Are there any situations where you would choose to deactivate or delete your Facebook account?
Joe Gullo