Have you read Meta’s new terms of service (TOS)? Even if you don’t have an account on Facebook, Instagram, Threads, Messenger, or WhatsApp, you may still be bound by its disgraceful overreach.
Many of us—me included—forfeited our right to privacy when we joined social media. What’s the alternative? If authors want to sell books, they need to have an online presence. So, when social media giants like Meta update their TOS, we barely give them a glance.
This time, it’s a mistake to accept or click the box away without reading what rights you’re granting. By using any of Meta’s sites and/or products after Jan. 1, 2025, you will be bound by its new TOS.
Thank God for the writing community’s sharp eyes and willingness to share information. A couple of weeks ago, writer friends warned me of Meta’s update to their terms of service in our “super-secret” author group on Slack.
What is Slack?
If you’re not familiar, Slack is a fantastic app for collaboration—blogmates, writing teams, authors in the same story world or collection, etc.—away from the prying eyes of social media giants. When you post within your designated group, no one but the members have access to your shared information or discussions. Many companies and corporations use Slack to stay in touch with their employees. Using Slack as an author group also saves your email inbox from replies that don’t apply to you. Highly recommend.
Meta’s Overreach
One of the authors in my group brought up the update to Meta’s terms of service. As if Zuckerberg hadn’t collected enough information on us, these new terms violate any right to privacy we had left. And not just while using a Meta platform. Now, we are always bound by their ridiculous terms, on or off Meta, because we have an account on Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, or Threads.
Even if you’re not active on social media, you are still bound if you use one of Meta’s products, such as Messenger or Marketplace.
Private or Direct Messages (PMs or DMs) Are Not Private
No online messages are private. You know that, right? Be careful of what you discuss. Big Brother monitors and stores your conversations.
Meta’s new TOS reaches beyond other social media PMs. When you click “accept” to its updated terms, you will grant Meta the right to read your private messages (nothing new) and use, share, copy, or sell, in whole or in part, in any way it wants, including but not limited to, training and developing its AI models.
Content
Any and all content you post to one of its platforms or products will include an automatic license for Meta to use, distribute, share, copy, sell, in whole or in part, in any way it wants, including but not limited to, AI content that may directly compete with you. Doesn’t matter if the content is your intellectual property. By using Meta after Jan. 1, 2025, you will automatically grant them free rein once you upload.
Want to share selfies with your new puppy or a family photo with friends and family? All your photos and videos, including your voice(!) and language, Meta will have the right to copy, share, sell, distribute, or use, in whole or in part, including but not limited to, training its AI models.
AI Features
Meta categorizes AI as a separate license—perhaps to make it more palatable—but is it? Not really. The moment you use any AI feature, like to search Facebook for a friend’s profile—the only search feature available now—you will automatically grant the same license, with no way to opt out. Sure, Meta says you can ask that your content not be used to develop or train AI, but it retains the right to deny your request. The only surefire way to opt out is to delete your content and/or account.
What if You Delete Your Meta Account?
Might not matter. Even if you don’t have an active Facebook, Instagram, Threads, or WhatsApp account, you could still be consenting to Meta’s new TOS if a friend or family member sends you a funny meme or Reel. Once you click that link to view Meta content, these new terms apply to you, effective Jan. 1, 2025.
Other Concerns
Meta admits to using AI but stops short of specifying how it plans to use our content to develop future AI models. This lack of transparency leaves creators vulnerable to their work being exploited.
Do not assume the omission works in your favor. The absence of clear disclosures about AI practices sets a dangerous precedent for big tech. You may think sharing selfies or photos of your children, significant other, or your home isn’t a big deal, but it is. The new AI license allows Meta to exploit you and your family.
Though you retain ownership over your content, Meta’s broad license to “use” it creates a gray area. What prevents Meta from repurposing your photo or video in marketing campaigns? Absolutely nothing.
By continuing to use a Meta platform, you agree to future terms. On Jan. 1, 2025, you will hand Meta a blank check to rewrite the rules at any time without the need to notify you for consent.
The more data Meta collects, the stronger its stranglehold on users. Nothing prevents Meta from selling your information to data brokers that will learn almost everything about you from your content, language, behavior, and so-called private messages. They in turn, sell your data to advertising markets. Or worse, use it to train AI without compensation or your consent.
I wouldn’t dare post a novel excerpt in 2025. I used to create video excerpts of all my books, which worked great as a marketing strategy. Now, finding all that old content on Meta will be a near-impossible feat. Even though I posted the video excerpts prior to Jan. 1, 2025, the new terms will supersede the old.
What’s a writer to do? Suggestions welcome!
Did you read Meta’s new TOS? Will you continue to use Facebook, Instagram, or Threads in 2025? Does anyone use WhatsApp? Can’t imagine it’d be helpful for authors. Please correct me if I’m wrong.
When you’ve worked for years to gain a following on one or more of Meta’s platforms, it is not an easy decision to delete your account. What alternatives do we have? Blogging, Substack, or Medium, I suppose.
Anyone use BlueSky?
I’ve heard mixed things about it. Most say, it’s comparable to X-Twitter, not Facebook. BlueSky claims “it offers a more decentralized, user-controlled experience with fewer ads and a cleaner interface, making it ideal for those who prioritize privacy and community.” However, it still lags behind X-Twitter in terms of features and user base.
The mere thought of building another audience from scratch exhausts me. How ’bout you?
Meta’s new TOS definitely gives me pause and makes me consider leaving Facebook. I mostly the platform for a few new non-writing groups I am in, as well as follow what’s happening with friends and family. The rush to insert AI into everything, and into every human to human interaction is a scourge IMHO.
I left Twitter a month ago. One reason was because that platform had become unusable—it was difficult to follow anyone, ads choked the feed, reach had been throttled, and I often didn’t see new posts until a day or so later.
I’m on Bluesky—I joined last spring and am part of a loose writing community there. I also share my astronomy images and get a lot of interest and interaction. It’s definitely worth checking out. I’ve begun sharing TKZ posts there and getting a little traction.
Bluesky has said right up front that they will never use our content there to train AI. Our feeds are not algorithmically curated—we see posts from accounts we follow in real time. It’s timely that you asked about Bluesky—I’m considering writing a post for TKZ about the platform.
Thank you so much for today’s post on Meta’s TOS, Sue. Forewarned is forearmed.
I hope you have a good week, my friend.
Thanks for the information about BlueSky, Dale. I would love it if you wrote about your experience there. I haven’t been to X-Twitter in weeks. The new setup exhausts me. The feed shows everyone I don’t follow. Musk (and complainers with nothing positive to say) destroyed a great platform.
Wishing you a fantastic week! 😁
Thanks for this critical update, Sue. TOS actually translates to “Ton of Sh*t” that now smothers us. Privacy is extinct. Society gave it up in exchange for convenience.
There’s a mass exodus by Authors Guild members to BlueSky but I haven’t tried it. Substack sounds intriguing.
This invasion extends beyond SM. For instance, new cars monitor your conversations. Not only that, anyone who even rides in the car is ensnared in the net w/o ever consenting to TOS.
Where are laws to protect us from this rampant hijacking of our lives? Where is Congress?
Probably having dinner with Zuckerberg, et.al.
All valid questions, Debbie. Someone needs to get a handle on this soon. As it is, we have no privacy rights. And don’t get me started on the bad actors. Someone is impersonating me on Facebook as we speak! Think Facebook stepped in after I reported them? Not yet. Meanwhile this bad actor is messaging all my friends, and in turn, they message me to see if it’s a real account. IThough I’m glad they’re doing due diligence, it’s continual PMs in the dozens per day. WTF 🤬
Sue, that’s why I had to close my FB account several years ago b/c it kept getting cloned. FB did nada.
And no, that wasn’t really me asking you for $400 to get me out of jail in Spain.
P.S. By now, you should have received the $100 Target gift card you requested from me. 😉
I have never used Facebook because of privacy concerns. I do use WhatsApp — I travel internationally a lot and it’s very commonly used outside the US. The EU has much stricter privacy controls than the US does, so hopefully that will come into play.
Bluesky is very similar to Twitter. One useful thing are “starter packs,” or groups of people interested in specific topics, so growing your base is much faster than on Twitter. I’m in a crime writers starter pack, for instance, with … 100 other writers? So someone can click on the starter pack to follow everyone at once.
Oh, that takes some of the sting out of building a new audience on BlueSky. Thanks so much, Janet. Still, it’s a difficult decision to delete thousands of followers on X-Twitter.
Starter packs are terrific. I’ve not been in one yet, but have found a number of authors that way and ended up mutually following them.
Thank you for this tip, Janet.
I don’t use Fb, but I have a profile there because our in-person writing group has a Facebook presence, and I’m responsible for keeping our page updated. (I could not figure out how to be our writing group’s Facebook post-writer without joining Fb myself.) Argh. Stinks. I don’t use Facebook, Instagram, Threads, Messenger, or WhatsApp, and I wish I could leave Fb.
That’s the problem many of us face now, and it’s discouraging to say the least. I’m in the same boat, Priscilla.
UGH! And there’s another angle to this–I can’t speak in detail because I’m just now dealing with it, but if you’re an author who wants to use a pen-name, these social media sites like FB make it near impossible to have a separate presence. I totally get not being allowed to have some type of shady presence on the web, but there ought to be a way to honor a person’s desire to operate under a pen-name while still being accountable as a real person behind the account.
As has been discussed here already, there is no such thing as privacy and it’s awful. This needs to be reversed ASAP.
It sure does, Brenda! Pen names are a whole other problem because how do you prove it’s you if a bad actor gets ahold of your pen name?
This all makes my head hurt. I interact so little on social media, and my lists are filtered down to a very few people so I never see any of the ‘bad stuff’ people are complaining about. I use social media ‘backward’ in that I go to MY profile/page, on X, Insta, etc., so I only see posts from people who I’ve either “asked” to follow, or people who’ve interacted with me. I have a bluesky account, but that was only because I wanted to make sure nobody else could use my name. I set up a Substack, which I use once a week and wouldn’t think of charging people to see my little ramblings.
I have my own blog and a newsletter.
I’m too old and set in my ways (and lazy), so I haven’t made any changes.
Bottom line: I really don’t care enough to worry about these things.
I get what you’re saying but you don’t care about your content being copied, sold, or used to train AI? It gives me pause.
The content I post isn’t the kind of stuff that would be of interest, I don’t think. And I have a feeling (being a trusting sort) that there will be enough of an uproar about selling work that it’ll get removed.
I look at SM from the perspective of where I find my readers. Unfortunately for Amish romances it’s primarily on Facebook. I have a decent following on both my author page and my personal page. Same with romantic suspense in a lesser degree. I enjoy X because I connect there with other writers and cancer peeps as well as following poets, TV shows, and news outlets. By liking people or topics I enjoy and avoiding those I don’t I nudge the algorithm toward my interests. Bluesky has been fun because it seems to be full of writers and people in the arts. Instagram helps me reach book reviewers and bloggers. I’ve dabbled in TikTok for my women’s fiction at my publisher’s insistence. Huge audience of Booktokers can be reached there. Suffice it to say it’s time consuming and can be overwhelming. If I could leave all of them I would be sorely tempted, but publishers expect it and I want to do everything I can to be a team player. It’s scary to think what meta will do with my posts. I often encourage readers to check out sample chapters on my website along with photo and video galleries. I feel as if we’re at meta’s mercy. I wonder what publishers’ positions will be regarding these changes??
My thoughts exactly, Kelly. Publishers insist authors have an online presence. It’s my understanding that if you only include a link on a Meta platform, it cannot use the content that redirects elsewhere, like to a newsletter or sample chapter on your website, etc. The only content they can steal, copy,, sell, or use is what you upload to the platform. At least for now till they sneak in legal jargon in the next updated TOS.
That’s good to know! Whew! For now.
This definitely is food-for-thought! I have been on fb for years and have become irritated with all of the nonsense! I live in a different part of the country from most of my relatives and fb is an easy way to stay connected. As a writer, I am too new to have an account for that so that is not a problem, but I need to think about something sometime! Though I hate to lose contact, I just may have to delete my fb account… if I can… Thank you Sue… troubling world. And you are correct… privacy went out the window when the internet came alive. Too bad the US is so far behind the rest of the world with regard to privacy, the internet, etc. Happy Holidays everyone!
Happy holidays, Fran! Yes, I agree it’s a shame the U.S. doesn’t protect us. Messenger is a godsend for calling long distance! I love my community on Facebook. It’d break my heart to leave, but the updated TOS gives me pause for sure.
Thanks, Sue, for posting this warning, proof that our lives are being manipulated and controlled by the greediest, most unscrupulous generation to walk the planet.
Aldous Huxley saw it coming 93 years ago.
We can only hope that providers such as Bluesky stay intact and don’t sell out for “more money than you can spend.” As an example, I have used Affinity Photo from the British firm Serif for almost 5 years, the salient point being their pricing–one-time low purchase price good for “life.” Serif recently sold out to the makers of Canva, a subscription service, thus cutting off that life in adolescence. Regardless of Serif staff’s promises to the contrary, everyone knows it’s only a matter of time before updates stop and a subscription service ala Photoshop kicks in.
So-called lifetime purchases for a product are based on the company’s lifetime, not the purchaser’s. Bluesky may be able to hold out against a buyout, or maybe a competitive invention that threatens its existence. We can only hope so, but I doubt it will hold true over the long run. Big money will buy a competing product only to kill it. Been there, seen it happen personally, over and over.
I’m an optimist by nature, but the pattern is set for this country: money speaks louder than good intentions.
Exactly, Dan. That’s my hesitation with BlueSky, as well. It may be user-friendly now, but they will sell out eventually. They all do. Which puts authors at a disadvantage. Building an audience takes time and work, only to have to move on to the next big platform with false promises and start over. It’s a crap shoot. Hence why I refused to open a Threads account. I did join TikTok a couple years ago, but BookTok is a money-making machine for book sales. Time-consuming, though.
This is downright disturbing, Sue.
I think I’ll share this to FB and see what happens. Maybe I’ll be fired by the bots, huh? But…wait, sharing this post to FB might get all of us in the hoosegow, right?
🙁
It may, Deb, yes. I have friends who were locked out of their account for discussing the updated TOS. And they still can’t gain access!
Maybe they call it “hate speech”?
What a world!
If they do, it’s hilarious, considering these writers used Meta’s own language.
What a world is right!
I’m in the same quandary as so many others. I’d like to leave FB, but don’t want to give up the connection to friends and family there. (Although, to be honest, I don’t spend much time on that platform anymore.)
X.com is my main SM connection. After reading the comments about Bluesky, I just created an account there and I’ll give it a try. Realistically, though, anytime you’re on somebody else’s territory, it’s a little like being a sharecropper. You’re at the whim of the owner. I still think the best web presence is your own website, blog, and newsletter.
Agreed, Kay. Property you own and control is always the best option. Otherwise, we’re at the mercy of social media giants.
Make Orwell fiction again.
Having a social media presence is important if you’re going for a trad contract. Relieved of that headache, I do only what I like: TKZ, X (I’ve been there since 2009), my Substack (which brings in some lettuce, too) and my email list (most ROI). But always remembering that the best marketing is the quality of your books >> word of mouth.
Very true, Jim! That’s the problem with my favorite platforms. I’ve been building my audiences for 12-13 years. I can’t just close my accounts.
I’ve been listening to a writer’s podcast called “Writing Off Social.” After reading your post, I am almost convinced that social media is the Antichrist!
You can say that again, Jane!
Thanks so much for this blog, Sue. What a disturbing development.
Right? I found it disturbing too, Elaine, and fear for our ability to sell books in the future. The only safe option is a website, blog, and newsletter that we control.
I will admit that the AI stuff (and how it’s being thrust upon us whether we like it or not) is irritating in the extreme. Even Microsoft has joined the thrust-AI-onto-users train, where there are now certain features of their products that I’ve been using for years that one can no longer use unless you agree to let Microsoft use your content to train their AI. (In particular, you can no longer use Microsoft Lens to convert your scanned images into PDFs unless you agree to let Microsoft use your documents (all of them) to train AI. I was pissed off when I discovered that.)
That said, I’m not rapidly approaching this apathetic viewpoint. I’m being hindered in my operations if I don’t agree to let mega-corporations use my content to train AI. And I can’t seem to turn off any of the AI features. It’s a lose-lose situation, and I only have so much energy to fight… so I have to pick my battles. Unfortunately, I feel like this is one battle that I don’t have the energy to fight anymore.
I hear you, Judy! We’d be fighting a losing battle. Microsoft pissed me off with their new TOS for Word that says they can use all your documents written in Word to train AI. BUT… at least they gave instructions on how to opt-out.
Fortunately, LibreOffice does everything Word does, and it’s free and open source! I’ve been using it for years because I refuse to pay a subscription for MS’s inferior products.
Is that for Word 360, Sue? I buy the program and install it on my computer.
Yes, Patricia. See Rachel’s comment on how to opt-out. Be sure to opt-out on every device that you use Word on. It’s not a one-size-fits-all opt-out clause.
You just made me look this up, so:
File
Options
Trust Center
Trust Center Settings
Privacy Options
Settings
And uncheck the Optional Connected Experiences box
And hopefully that will do it.
Exactly right, Rachel. You must opt-out on every device.
I don’t know whether it’s of any use, but if you Google “Turn off Meta” there are somethings you can do. Will they have any effect? No clue.
Huh. Not sure what “turn off” means if you still have an open account, but good to know. Thanks, Terry.
I use Bluesky, Sue. But, unfortunately, I also used FB. Instagram wouldn’t let me on as it said I violated their terms and refused to answer why. I will stop using FB immediately. I want no part of that. It’s why I stopped with X (Twitter, whatever you want to call it). Elon changes the terms to suit his advantage. Bluesky is like X, yes but I find it helpful. However, it does have some of X’s trolls trying to establish a base there, you just have to block them before they get out of hand. I used Substack too but there’s as many trolls over there and the site managers don’t care.
I heard about the trolls invading BlueSky. Thanks for the info, Traci!
Bluesky says they will never use your content for AI training, but we all know how that changes once they feel it’s lucrative enough. Also, BlueSkys API is open, which means even if they don’t do that anyone else can scrape the data and use it. My personal favorite social media is Mastodon. No algorithm’s throwing things at you, or limiting your “reach.” It’s decentralized on multiple servers, so no one can ever own it. The people there seem decent, and I’ve seen nothing of the hysteria and flaming common on other platforms. If FB is going this route, I’ll likely stop using it, the same way I stopped using xitter.
I heard about Masterdon. Thanks for the info, David!
Yeah, I’ve been trying to distance myself from all Meta products lately. Facebook is dying. The only people who use it are 30+, all the young people have gone to tiktok or twitch or discord or numerous other places. The books I write are for younger audiences, and I’m not terribly interested in connecting with other authors anymore. I have my personal website/blog, and I occasionally point xtwitter at it. I recently got on substack and I’ve been enjoying connecting with new people I don’t know. On xtwitter, FB, insta, all those places, I only have the same circle of author friends. I never reach new people. So I’ve deleted my FB, my insta is old and will no longer receive updates. I’m only keeping the account so I can check in with artists who have posted tutorials on insta and nowhere else. I post art on tumblr and deviantart, my comic is hosted on comicfury. I’m not interested in bluesky or any other heavily algorithm’d social media any more. No more of that rat race for me. If I want to advertise, I’ll buy advertising on Amazon or somewhere. This AI rights grab is the last straw.
True about Facebook’s demographics, Kessie. Unfortunately (fortunately?)), that’s my target audience.
I’m late to the dance as usual. Someone advised me quaite a while ago that anything posted on any internet site, be it Meta or I dunno, Wattpad or Reddit or anything else is out in the wild, you can’t call it back, and it can and will be used by anyone for anything.
I read the FB user agreement and sure enough, under grant of license, there it is. This means it qualifies as previously published and no traditional; publisher will touch it. That is why none of my weritten work gets posted on any internet site.
When I publish, if I ever do it will be all mine.
You’re right, Robert. Any unpublished content is considered published once the writer posts it to social media.
Same goes for posting drafts to your website/blog. Not a good idea if you plan to go traditional.
Thanks for this. Bluesky is awesome. Similar to the old Twitter, but bots and haters get blocked, people don’t F4F, and beware of a lot of spam and reply bots. But it’s good.