Facebook put the brakes on Admiral Insurance's plan of stalking Facebook accounts of potential clients. The social media network reiterated that the car insurance provider will be violating the terms and conditions set by Facebook.
The car insurance specialist announced last Wednesday that it will be offering discounted rates to young people who are first-time drivers if they allow the company to see their Facebook profiles.
According to BBC, Admiral posted the announcement on their website. The company will use an algorithm to determine what kind of driver the potential client will be. By analyzing the person's Facebook posts particularly the kind of language used, Admiral claims that they can calculate the likelihood that a potential client will be a safe driver or not.
The algorithm is supposed to check the Facebook user's activity in the past six months and determine the person's personality through the posts.
Admiral believes there is a direct link to people's personalities and the way they drive.
CNBC reported that the insurance provider will be offering reduced rates depending on the personality and potential driving habits of the young driver.
Upon learning of the company's plan, Facebook sent out an official statement saying the company prohibits such violations of their customers' privacy.
"Protecting the privacy of the people on Facebook is of utmost importance to us. We have clear guidelines that prevent information being obtained from Facebook from being used to make decisions about eligibility."
Big Brother Watch, the British civil liberties and privacy campaign group, disapproves of Admiral's plan, as well.
Renate Samson, the group's CEO, describe Admiral's plan as saying "You can have a better deal by offering up a bit of your privacy."
Samson reminded all Facebook users to be aware of the bits of information that they make available online through networks such as Facebook.
Last month, Facebook was caught unaware that Geofeedia was being used by police authorities to 'spy' on protest rallies by scanning Facebook posts made by protesters within a specified area. Facebook also put a stop to that activity.
