The company clarified that this update does not involve collecting new categories of information. Instead, it repurposes existing data streams—already utilized for targeted advertising—to influence what users see on Facebook and Instagram. A user browsing for camping equipment on an external site, for instance, can expect to encounter an influx of related Reels and suggested content shortly thereafter.
Alongside these changes, Meta is simplifying its privacy controls. The current "Your activity off Meta technologies" setting will be retired, replaced by an expanded "Activity from other businesses" tool. This update shifts the user experience toward choosing whether external data should influence feed personalization and advertisements, rather than allowing users to disconnect that activity entirely from their profiles.
These adjustments arrive next month in the United States and select international markets. However, a significant list of regions—including Europe, the United Kingdom, Brazil, and South Korea—will remain excluded from the initial rollout. This move follows years of friction with regulators, marked by a record $5 billion Federal Trade Commission fine in 2019 and ongoing investigations by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau regarding the company’s handling of third-party financial data.
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