How to protect your Facebook info

By Helen A.S. Popkin

Facebook's 10 most popular applications are among those transmitting users' IDs to outside advertisers, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal. The report also highlights the ongoing problem of the "app gap" -- Facebook users who don't use applications are still at risk of having their personal information shared with third parties if they're Facebook "friends" with people who do.
Best way to prevent Facebook applications from sharing your personal information with behavior-tracking advertisers? Don't play FarmVille or whatever. Don't take that quiz. If you've done it in the past – well, your stuff is probably out there. But it's not too late to lock down your profile from future share-happy apps. You can ditch 'em completely, tweak them individually.
Here's how:

• Click "Account" on the top right corner of your Facebook profile.
• From the dropdown menu, click "Privacy Settings."
• On the bottom left corner of the page, click "Edit your settings."
• This should bring you to a page titled: "Choose Your Privacy Settings & Applications and Websites."
• See "Applications you use" – it's the first item on the page.
• Within "Applications you use," you'll see two choices.
  1. "Remove unwanted or spammy applications" (lets you pick and choose)
  2. Turn off all platform applications (will disconnect you from all applications, as well as outside websites and Web pages you "like.")
• "Remove unwanted or spammy applications" (lets you pick and choose)
  Clicking the above option will bring you to "Applications, Games, and Websites > Applications you use.

Didn't know you clicked on all that junk, huh?
Now you have the option of both deleting the applications you don't want up in your business.
You can also open each application and edit the settings and decide how much you want to share on each individual program.

"Turn off all platform applications."

• Click the above option. If you're currently using any games or other applications, you should get one of those "are you sure?" type prompts that says:

If you turn off platform, you'll be disconnected from all applications and websites. That means friends won't be able to use them to interact with you, and information and settings you've saved may be permanently deleted. To disable all applications at once, click "Select all."

This ain't "Sophie's Choice." Kiss your cows goodbye and delete 'em.
Keep your friends from sharing your information

• Return to "Choose Your Privacy Settings > Applications and Websites"
• See "Info accessibility through your friends" -- it's the second item on the page.
• Click "Edit Settings"
• "Info accessible through your friends" should pop up on the page.
• Uncheck everything. Click "Save Changes"

 Source: msnbc