Facebook says a software bug made some private posts public for as many as 14 million users over several days in May.
The problem, which Facebook says it has fixed, is the latest privacy scandal for the world's largest social media company. The company said on Thursday the bug automatically suggested that users make new posts public, even if they had previously restricted to "friends only" or another private setting.
Erin Egan, Facebook's chief privacy officer, says the bug did not affect past posts. She added that Facebook is notifying users who posted publicly during the time the bug was active to review their posts.
"We recently found a bug that automatically suggested posting publicly when some people were creating their Facebook posts," Erin Egan, Facebook's chief privacy officer, said to CNN. "We have fixed this issue and starting today we are letting everyone affected know and asking them to review any posts they made during that time. To be clear, this bug did not impact anything people had posted before, and they could still choose their audience just as they always have.
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The news follows a recent furor over Facebook's sharing of user data with device makers, including China's Huawei.
Associated Press
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