Thousands rise to Quit Facebook Day

Facebook has been accused of not providing enough control over personal data

Today is Quit Facebook Day and over 26,000 people have vowed to leave the social network owing to privacy concerns.

However, new research suggests that the day will not be detrimental to Facebook. Research firm Vision Critical said that a mass exodus is unlikely because people have grown too accustomed to the site.

Facebook has upset users in recent months by not providing enough control over personal data.

Changes in privacy settings in December allowed users to control who sees each individual piece of content uploaded, whereas the previous policy had allowed them to create block settings, which proved easier to manage.

Facebook recently admitted it that it had "missed the mark" with the change, and modified its data policy after complaints from the European data protection agency and the US Federal Trade Commission.

However, the modifications are not enough for many Facebook users. "We don't think Facebook has much respect for you or your data, especially in the context of the future," said the Quit Facebook Day group.

The privacy issue is a symptom of a "larger set of issues", according to the group, which has urged users to leave the social network even though Facebook can be enjoyable and addictive.

But Matt Kleinschmit, Vision Critical media president, said that, while Facebook users are becoming increasingly concerned about privacy, predictions of the firm losing a large number of users in one day are "highly overrated".

"Too many users are just too vested in the service to delete their account and dismantle a social network they have cultivated over time," he said.

A Vision Critical survey of nearly 700 US Facebook users found that only 11 per cent were aware of Quit Facebook Day and only two per cent were going to quit.

Over 80 per cent of respondents are now using Facebook more carefully, and 76 per cent are not sharing as much personal information as they did.