The Time Mark Zuckerberg Called Facebook Users ‘Dumb f*cks’

Ever since it was opened to everyone in 2006 (the website was launched in 2004 but for two years memberships were limited to Harvard College students), Facebook had to face harsh criticism regarding their attitude toward user privacy.

To its credit, the company has often modified their privacy policies based on such feedback, but an early IM exchange between Mark Zuckerberg and a college friend won’t help put privacy concerns to rest. 

The exchange took place in 2004 when Zuckerberg had recently started the popular social networking website. In it, he called Facebook user “Dumb fucks” for submitting their personal data. Here’s the conversation: (the article continues after the ad)

Zuck: Yeah so if you ever need info about anyone at Harvard

Zuck: Just ask.

Zuck: I have over 4,000 emails, pictures, addresses, SNS

[Redacted Friend’s Name]: What? How’d you manage that one?

Zuck: People just submitted it.

Zuck: I don’t know why.

Zuck: They “trust me”

Zuck: Dumb fucks.

At the time Mark was just 20 years old and yes, he could have been completely joking but still, this may explain Facebook’s aggressive privacy policy: do something and then see how people will react.

After all, if we believe what early Facebook engineering boss Charlie Cheever reports in David Kirkpatrick’s book The Facebook Effect: The Inside Story of the Company That Is Connecting the World, Zuckerbergs own view on policy is that people shouldn’t care about it as much as they do:

“I feel Mark doesn’t believe in privacy that much, or at least believes in privacy as a stepping stone. Maybe he’s right, maybe he’s wrong.”

Of course, Facebook declined to comment about the leaked conversation.

If you like what you read, then you will definitely love this one: There’s A Reason Why Mark Zuckerberg Made Facebook Blue 

Photo: Wikimedia, Complex
Photoshop: I’m A Useless Info Junkie
Sources: Well, These New Zuckerberg IMs Won’t Help Facebook’s Privacy Problems

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