In response to a wide-spread rumor that it is publicly posting all user’s phone numbers, Facebook has said that isn’t the case. The rumor also claimed that Facebook’s Contacts feature is new, which the company assured subscribers was wrong information, too.
“Rumors claiming that your phone contacts are visible to everyone on Facebook are false. Our Contacts list, formerly called Phonebook, has existed for a long time,” the company said on its Facebook fan page. “The phone numbers listed there were either added by your friends themselves and made visible to you, or you have previously synced your phone contacts with Facebook. Just like on your phone, only you can see these numbers.”
The rumor claimed that ever phone number in user’s Contacts list was being publicly published, and urged people to delete their phone numbers from their account.
Facebook is often the target of complaints about user privacy, which makes rumors like this one so easy to spread. In this case, however, it looks like the rumor is unfounded.