Here's what Facebook knows about you

Ask privacy advocate and Facebook critic Mark Weinsteinwhat kind of information the social media giant has on its users and he responds with a blunt, one-word answer: "Everything."

That may be somewhat hyperbolic, but it's certainly fair to sayFacebook holdsa lot of personal material. That data collection, and the sharing of it with other firms, continues to be controversial.

On Wednesday, the New York Times reportedthat Facebook gave some companies more extensive access to users' personal data than it has previously revealed, letting them read private messages or see the names of friends without consent. One of thosecompanies, the story alleged, wasthe Royal Bank of Canada.

The Royal Bank of Canada disputed thereport and the suggestion that it ever had the ability to view users' private messages.

Meanwhile, Facebook disputedthe allegations that it gave some companies carte blanche to access user data. In a statement to CBC News, Facebook saidits corporate partners "don't get to ignore people's privacy settings, and it's wrong to suggest that they do."

Still, the New York Timesreport raises questions about what information, exactly, Facebook has about you.

Here are some answers to basic questions about what information the California-based social media giant retains:

Ok, so as a Facebook user, I get that itrecords my basic profile informationand Facebook activity. But what exactly does that include?

It includesquite a bit. At thevery least, Facebook has access to the information that youprovided to them directly, includingprofile information, email address, friends and contacts

But it's more thanthat.Facebook itself includes details of their collection policies ontheir help centre page under the heading:What categories of my Facebook data are available to me? This includes:

• Dates, times and titles of ads clicked.
• All of the apps you have added.
• A history of the conversations you've had on Facebook Chat.
• Email addresses added to your account (even those you may have removed).
• Events you've joined or been invited to.
• IP address, dates and times associated with logins to your Facebook account

Can Ifind out what information Facebook has on me?

Yes. On Facebook, youcan download a copy of the data the company holds about you. Users can save the archived information to their computer on a zip file, including material"about you," calls and messages, likes and reactions, payment history, search history, your places andad interests.

Is that all they've got?

Logging on toFacebook will allow the company toknow your location. If you have a Facebook mobile app installed, the companyknowsyour GPS coordinates and what you are visiting.

"So when you walk into the coffee store, when you walk into a stadium, that information will go to Facebook andFacebook will know thatyou're attending something oryou'rebuying coffee,"Soltani said.

How about my activity off Facebook?

They know that too.

"Theyknow a lot of what you do around the rest of the internet by way of third party tracking networks," saidBennett Cyphers, a staff technologist with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a California-based digital rights group.

If you're accessing the internet on a browser or mobile device you have used before tologinto Facebook, the companycan link that to your actual account. They do this by using aninvisible "pixel" essentially a piece of code that Facebookconvinces web site owners to install on their pages. That pixel allowsFacebook to know if a Facebook user has visited that site.

So if you're not a Facebook user, Facebook has no information about you, right?

Wrong.Facebook maintains what have been referred to as shadow accounts. This is information that Facebook has been able to collect through the friends of a non-Facebook user, if those friends use the social media service.

For example, if a friend, who is on Facebook, adds you to their address book, uploads your photo ortags you, that information will be made available to Facebook. Similarly, if your Facebook friend calls or messages you, their activity log including your information will be available to Facebook.

"If or when you do sign up for the first time to Facebook, they can link the data they already have about you to you and populate your account," Cyphers said.

Soltani said Facebook can also track a non Facebook user'sbrowser uniquely, through those pixels. "Andthat information helps them build a general profile about what people like," he said.

With files from The Associated Press