How to Block Annoying Facebook Applications
As an active user of Facebook, I keep on receiving complaints from people who are annoyed at getting tagged by annoying applications that pop up once in a while. Generally those applications tag and send notifications to Facebook users without the need to ask the user to install the application.
Recently, the Pillow Fight Application is making rounds in Facebook which annoys some users. However, the simple steps I have written below, are what I do whenever I encounter them. I find this list effective.
- Find the application update posted on your Facebook wall then click the link going to the application page. The link should go to the application page itself.
Note: Another way of going to the application page is through the navigation bar at the top of the page (in blue), hover over Settings, then click Application Settings. Change Show setting from Recently Used to Authorized to get a complete list of applications installed into your profile. Click the offending application in the list to visit the page.
- Near the upper left corner of the Facebook page, click Block Application. A confirmation window should appear.
- Click Block <application name> to confirm. This blocks the application, so you won’t get tagged by other people innocently and accidentally in the future. This will also remove all the application’s posts from other users in the feed.
- (If tagged by an image generated by the application) Click the image in your Photo profile section in your Facebook account, click the image then hunt for your name (I suggest using Search or Find functions in your browser, there could be dozens tagged by the application). Click remove tag beside your name. This avoids getting more notifications from other people who left comments on that image.
Some important things to watch out for:
Be wary of applications that look like part of the Facebook system. Examples are the Activate (which invites users to join their application so that their Facebook profile would be saved from deletion due to Facebook server overload) and Facebook Chat v2.0 (which is supposed to add video chat capability to the existing chat system).
- Don’t take these applications at face value – these are just often out to collect personal information. To verify if these applications are truly part of the Facebook system, do step number one above then look under Information – “The application was NOT developed by Facebook” should confirm that these applications are just out to trick people and collect personal information.
- Another telltale sign is the reviews left by other people who visited the application page. Do step number one above and look for the review tab. Although this is not 100% reliable, people’s opinions of the application are sometimes helpful.
- Be a good Facebook citizen: report suspicious and annoying applications such as these so that Facebook could review and remove the application from their system. Reports are the proper and prompt way of being heard than just writing down complaints about that pesky application on your Facebook wall.
If you follow other steps in combating this problem, or have other tips and tricks in mind, I would be glad to hear them out.
katz
December 30th, 2009 at 4:08 am #
Good post. Some apps are really annoying. Actually pillow fight is fine for me. I do not like friends for sale.
Also here’s something everyone should know: because of the Facebook API, some of your information is stored or “cached” to someone else’s server. You’ll never know how they will profit from the information but surely they just don’t do it for fun. That is how the web services business work. (I should know. It’s my job).
Holly Jahangiri
December 30th, 2009 at 7:49 am #
This is a great tutorial for people who want to get stop all their friends from sending them endless invitations to silliness (although a little silliness is a good thing, sometimes…)
I wish I’d known about this BEFORE I got hooked on Fishville.
uberVU - social comments
December 31st, 2009 at 10:54 am #
Social comments and analytics for this post…
This post was mentioned on Twitter by LadyProgrammer: How to Block Annoying Facebook Applications http://bit.ly/5lClJJ
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bloggista
December 31st, 2009 at 5:47 pm #
@Holly, if I did this on Farmville, Jan would not have been hooked too. It’s my fault.
.-= bloggista´s last blog ..The Precious Gem as the Lady Programmer =-.
Holly Jahangiri
December 31st, 2009 at 9:42 pm #
You sure you want to admit that in public, bloggista? We have to have an intervention, now.
Good point, though – we probably owe it to our friends to block a few apps in the new year.
Gem
January 1st, 2010 at 10:32 am #
One of my closest friends admitted to me that she blcoked all the applications I’ve invited her in, but I don’t care anyway. Interestingly, I noticed that she actually installed those tricky apps like Activate and Facebook Chat v2.0 – those I’ve mentioned
Nice addition about the Facebook API. I hope someone who lands into this post takes note of your warning.
Ceblogger
January 1st, 2010 at 12:25 pm #
thanks for the info, Gem! what i do now is ignore the invite. every time i read the warning that some of my personal data will be collected by their servers, i back off. but i’m keeping farmtown and ninja warz.
.-= Ceblogger´s last blog ..Happy New Year 2010 and other Text Messages =-.
Archon Digital
January 8th, 2010 at 11:27 pm #
Hi my name is Jon, (others saying “Hi Jon”) and it’s been 39 hrs since I last checked my farm
.-= Archon Digital´s last blog ..Philippine Politics and WordPress Loops Don’t Mix =-.
Archon Digital
January 8th, 2010 at 11:33 pm #
I value my privacy specially my Family’s (take note ‘s not ies) and which is why I filter quite a lot. I have since removed dozens of nonsense Facebook apps except for Mafia Wars (Yeah!!!) and some others.
.-= Archon Digital´s last blog ..My Twitter Followers Were Abducted by Aliens =-.
cor
January 27th, 2010 at 7:47 pm #
i hated the pillow fight too. thanks gem.