Facebook forced auto-unfollow creator to stop unfollowing everything – IT Pro – News

Last summer, Facebook forced the developer of an automatic unfollow tool, Unfollow Everything, to stop using this tool. The Chrome extension automatically allows users to unfollow all Facebook friends “to make Facebook less addictive.”

from extensie unfollow everything All friends, groups, and Facebook user page have been unfollowed. The user was still friends with those friends and groups across the platform, but no longer automatically sees all posts on News Feed.

says on the list The developer thus makes the social medium “less addictive” and gives users more control over their news feed. “You can unfollow manually, but if you have a thousand connections, you won’t do it quickly.” According to the developer, the tool has also been used by a Swiss university to research how long users spend on the platform.

However, on July 1, developer Lewis Barclay received that stop and stopmessage from facebook. The extension is said to facilitate “unauthorized Facebook functions”, with the platform aiming to automate actions “such as unfollowing friends, Pages and groups en masse”. In addition, the extension made illegal use of Facebook trademarks.

In addition to the message, Barclay’s Facebook account has also been permanently banned and he is not allowed to create a new account on Facebook or other Facebook services. Barclay says he sees the letter as “shameful,” but doesn’t want to start the legal battle. “If I lose, I’ll have to pay Facebook legal fees, which is something I don’t have the money for.”

The developer says it’s looking into other ways Facebook users can use the platform less. In addition, he calls on lawmakers to consider how platforms may restrict freedom of choice, “including via user terms.”

Barclay’s Slate follows Detective Francis Hogan himself Announced earlier this week. She argues that Facebook earns more if users consume more content and stay longer on the platform. This may also be the reason why Barclay stopped using his tool, because according to Barclay, the tool ensured that users stayed on the platform for less time.