SILICON VALLEY – Facebook have unveiled an update to their terms of service which will required users to submit a DNA sample to continue using the service.
Set to be phased in over the next few weeks, the changes will be accompanied by updated privacy settings to “make it easy to restrict the amount of genetic information you share with your friends.”
Facebook’s announcement comes on the back of rumors rival service Google+ will require new users to submit a copy of house keys when signing up to the social network.
‘Hair, blood, or semen is fine’
The requirement is thought to be part of a new feature set known internally as “Project X Y”, which would match each profile to a set of chromosomes for level of service that previous only came with a criminal record.
“We want to make the awesome Facebook service even more awesomer and to do that we need a better understand of what makes users tick – literally,” said Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg.
He also confirmed the changes were opt-out and advised users who did not wish to continue with the service to make their preference clear before the changes were rolled out and user DNA was collected “because otherwise it’s just awkward.”
The company has pointed users to the following section of its terms of service to better understand the coming changes:
You hereby grant Facebook an irrevocable, perpetual, non-exclusive, transferable, worldwide license (with the right to place at crime scenes) to (a) use, clone, stream, scan, reconstitute and splice any DNA you provide to the Facebook Service subject only to your privacy settings or our whim in the heat of the moment and (b) to use your X and Y chromosomes (as a pair or individually) and genome sequencing for any purpose, including commercial, advertising or general mad science, each of (a) and (b) on or in connection with the Facebook Service or the promotion thereof.
Facebook’s CEO assured users that “we’re not taking DNA to profit from you, and stressed that third-party apps must ask for permission before gaining access to any genetic information a user has not set as open to “everyone.”
All your DNA are belong to us
“We make it super easy to control how much of the information we learn from your DNA is shared,” explained Zuckerberg. “So if you don’t want to share information like your probability of contracting diabetes, That’s OK.”
“Or maybe you only want friends of friends to know the likelihood of your future child developing Cystic fibrosis? You can do that with a simple setting.”
“We give you total control so it’s definitely not creepy.”
Despite assurances from the company, the changes have been met with criticism from some users, privacy advocates and repeat offenders who question whether the new changes gone too far.
“I’m not sure how I feel about this,” said one unsure user.”I mean, right now they only ask for my name, gender, phone number, home address, email address, work history, employment history, relationship history, likes, location, and mother’s maiden name.”
“…Actually, maybe it not all that bad. Forget I said anything.”
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