Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

That must have been a long time ago. Nowadays there are a lot of safeguards and that's one of the things that gets you fired right away.


Yes, in a "never_do_this_or_you_will_be_fired" kind of way


Nowadays when you visit someones profile you show up on their suggested friend list. Creepy or cute, a deliberate information leak.


viewing someones profile without them knowing is not creepy?


After getting scammed on Facebook Marketplace, I look at the profiles of sellers, particularly if they don’t have much in way of reviews. That seems more prudent than creepy to me. I’m not stalking anyone and I’m not looking to be their friend.

Is there a better way to do seller verification? It does seem like an information leak to me. Craigslist and eBay don’t share my identification as a potential buyer. I don’t love the marketplace being tied to a social network, but it’s what many people are using these days.


sure, showing up on suggested friends is weird. the way linkedin does it makes more sense: "these people have viewed your profile". i was picking up on hiding it outright. while that may be justified in your case, it's also reasonable to let them know.

the only people i would really not want to find out that i look at their profile are spammers and scammers (oh, and stalkers).

so both sides have a fair reason. so guess, if you can, choose the social network that works the way you prefer.


sneaking up to someones house and peeping in theier windows is creepy. or just camping out in front of their window from the street legally.

but that person had to put their info into the website, themselves, by choice, and then chose to let their privacy settings be such that others can view them.

if you pin your photo up to a cork board, don't be surprised if people see it


but the reverse is true too. if you look someone up, don't be surprised if they find out. really, i don't see how that would be a big deal.

with more and more illegitimate tracking being done, informing those being tracked seems a benefit, not a drawback.

there is a difference however between one institution tracking who all the people are that i am looking at, vs the person i am looking at finding out for themselves who is looking at them.


It is creepy, that's what they're saying.


what i understood is that "showing up on their suggested friends list is creepy, and it's an information leak". the way i read that is that they would prefer not to show when someone visited their profile. and that's what i consider creepy.


I keep reading same statements here for past 10+ years, every time some similar fuckup @fb happens. Every. Single. Time.

0 trust in that company, 0 trust in its employees.




Consider applying for YC's Summer 2026 batch! Applications are open till May 4

Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: