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21 Nov 2009
Canadian insurance firm Manulife has reportedly cut a depressed woman's benefits after seeing photos of her on Facebook showing her as "happy".
Nathalie Blanchard said that she cannot understand how Manulife was able to access her account because she had adjusted her privacy settings so that only friends could see her posts, according to CBC News.
Blanchard had been on leave from her job at IBM for over a year after she was diagnosed with depression. She claims that she was having fun on her doctor's advice in order to forget her problems.
Manulife confirmed to CBC News that the company uses Facebook to investigate clients, but claimed that it "would not deny or terminate a valid claim solely based on information published on web sites such as Facebook".
Facebook has already proved its use to human resources departments wanting to investigate potential new staff. Senior managers have also been found to use Facebook to check up on employees.
The Facebook privacy policy states that the social networking site will share information to prevent fraud or other illegal activity.
"This may include sharing information with other companies, lawyers, courts or other government entities," says the policy.
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Do you agree?
face book need to check the claims first
there is one real problem here thats photos showing you smiling doesnt mean your not depressed I've been seriously depressed over the last 20 od years but learnt that best way to keep people from asking whats up is to smile the only person other than you to be able to tell if your depressed or not is a qualified medical person after meeting you facebook needs to ask what fraud and how does this help convict if the answer is the pics show the person smiling then facebook should say f**k off
Posted by: me 26 Nov 2009
Wow! Smiling on Facebook Pic Cures Depression!
I have fought depression for nearly 40 years. During that time, I have laughed and smiled, and have been photographed and videographed in the act. At other times, I have been down so low that I could barely function--not many images of that are around though. "Normal Society" has as much understanding of the mechanics and consequences of mental illness as a caveman does about IBM computers. Should this woman dress in black, cover herself with ashes, or hide under a rock? In this case, the narrow minded, horse and buggy mentality makes someone a few dollars, so it's an especially good thing.
Posted by: Artie 22 Nov 2009
Are they serious?
It sounds like Manulife has a severe misunderstanding of depression.
Posted by: Kristen 21 Nov 2009
Parisites
Insurance companies, there agents and investigators are parisites, the low end of what we call life. As a person who has delt with depression most of my life, I would like to see these pictures. I have been known to smile and yes even laugh at times when inside the only thought was ending it all. These insurance companies are not in the business of giving back monies that have been paid to them. However if thiis woman's claim is fraudulant,she to is a parisite and what I can say is that in that case they diserve each other.
Posted by: Kent 21 Nov 2009
Facebook is a privacy nightmare
I have resisted all friends attempts to get me to join facebook. This is a site that is just ripe for this kind of privacy invasion, insurers, advertisers, employers, law enforcement, political parties...it's just endless. If you value your FREEDOM just say not to facebook.
Posted by: noneofyourdamnbusiness 21 Nov 2009
Don't trust facebook
I use a phoney nick name, and a phony picture on facebook. I also have all phone demographic information as well. My friends know who I am, but if facebook wants to sell me out to a third party, good frickin' luck. The moment a better system comes along, Facebook is toast.
Posted by: Floyd Nimrod 21 Nov 2009
Re privacy invasion on Facebook
This is not acceptable, Facebook should be for only those you allow in, just like your email. People will stop using it, I know I have switched to emails for most of my communications. What I, or anyone else writes is intended only for friends, not spies, so why is Facebook allowing this invasion of privacy?
Posted by: Joyce 21 Nov 2009
Haha
hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
Posted by: nick 21 Nov 2009
Cheaters should be caught!!!
Good for the Insurance company..... Too many sleazebags fake health problems to collect $$$$ making it so much harder for genuine cases to get the necessary help... Fakes cost us all!!
Posted by: John 21 Nov 2009
Insurers using face book
My only comment is a question. "Why would anyone want to use anything like Facebook for any reason?
Posted by: Bigdaddy 21 Nov 2009
Privacy; it's a choice
If you don't want people snooping in your affairs, then keep your life private. When you CHOOSE to use face book, twitter, etc., you have chosen to risk your privacy. When that risk causes you grief, you have only yourself to blame. Stay off these internet sites if your privacy is important. Whatever you put down in these websites is testimony. Lawyers always tell their clients, "Don't talk to the police", but the client doesn't listen, and in the end, they end up in jail--often wrongfully so. If you don't want your words misconstrued, or for others to purposely warp them to their advantage--as was the case in this article--then don't talk to the internet. There. I've said it. DON'T TALK TO THE INTERNET. Of course, I know that, just like the lawyer's clients, however, that you all know better than me. So when you get busted for being indiscreet, you'll know where NOT to go for sympathy. DON'T TALK TO THE INTERNET!
Posted by: Jayson 21 Nov 2009
1984 On Facebook
Its way too easy for those with ill intent to find information useful to exploit someone from Facebook activity. Its not relegated to criminal activity but includes employers, insurance companies and yes even the governments we have openly and unknowingly allowed these Orwellian practices. Life imitates art, the camera in every room is just a bit different and we willingly agreed to it because we thought it was just to fulfill our own social inadequacies.
Posted by: Rick N. 21 Nov 2009
what were you expecting?
You publish everything about yourself on a free internet site, not reading the fine print in the license agreement, and somebody somewhere uses it against you. Read atricles about facebook security, every application you upload allows the suthors access to you and your friends profiles, some fun, some not so fun. People think because there are 3 billion pictures of people photocopying their butts at the office party that theirs would never be found or used against them. Look at what you were up to as a teenager, would you want a pictoral record of that floating around cyberspace forever? well guess what...
Posted by: Web Guy 21 Nov 2009
This is wrong.
Just becuz a person has a good time or 2 during the course of a year and a half does not mean that they are no longer depressed. I was even advised by my doctor to take birthdays and holidays off from work to celebrate and help forget about my problems. These are like rehabilitation steps for a person to try and step out of the depression. The insurance company should have contacted her to inquire about this, also should have contacted her doctor.
Posted by: AliveInNiagara 21 Nov 2009
V3, you impress me much
Your article is, to my knowledge, the only one of dozens that actually quote Facebook Term policy; We may also share information when we have a good faith belief it is necessary to prevent fraud or other illegal activity Remember all that 'policy' you zipped past? Good job, V3, for actually reading it. Manulife: 'We believe fraud by your user' FB: All reasonable and expected.
Posted by: michel 21 Nov 2009