FACEBOOK users have given a big thumbs down to the social networking site after it emerged their web activity is being tracked - even after logging out.

Australian tech expert Nik Cubrilovic has revealed that when you log out, Facebook merely modifies the cookie, it and in some cases installs new ones that send user information as you continue to surf the web when you log out, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.

Every time you log in to Facebook it installs what is known as a “cookie” in your browser which tracks your activity on the site, sparking massive online fury.

Deleting cookies – a how to guide



“Even if you are logged out, Facebook still knows and can track every page you visit,” Mr Cubrilovic wrote in a blog post.

“This is not what 'logout' is supposed to mean - Facebook are only altering the state of the cookies instead of removing all of them when a user logs out.”

Whenever you visit a website that contains a “like” or “share” button – or any other Facebook app, your information including your account ID is sent back to Facebook, Mr Cubrilovic explained.

The only way to protect your privacy is to delete all of your cookies.



However all this is of little consolation to angry users vented their fury in online forums, saying their privacy has once again been violated by the social networking site.



One Facebook user @ScreamMinaj wrote on twitter: “Now Loading ... Facebook Is Just Plain STUPID Now -_- *Deactivates Account*”.

Another user @emsexton wrote: “Freaking woah, Zuckerberg. You are out of control”.

A number of applications and plug-ins have surfaced in reaction to Facebook's new makeover and the privacy implications that come with it.

Google Chrome has created an app called Facebook Disconnect which removes the news ticker from your page when you use the Chrome web browser.

Firefox's “ShareMeNot” add-on also prevents third parties from tracking you until you actually click on the “like” or “share” button.



Mr Cubrilovic said the news showed Facebook needed to be more transparent about its privacy settings.

“Facebook are front-and-centre in the new privacy debate just as Microsoft were with security issues a decade ago,” he wrote.

“The question is what it will take for Facebook to address privacy issues and to give their users the tools required to manage their privacy and to implement clear policies - not pages and pages of confusing legal documentation, and 'logout' not really meaning 'logout'.”