How to stop Facebook from tracking when you are not in use

Facebook changed this behaviour by introducing a new privacy setting giving users more clear, granular control over the collection of their location data.

Here's how you can prevent Facebook from tracking your location when the app is not in use:

Open Facebook app on your android smartphone

Go to the Settings menu on the top right corner (looks like this ☰)

Tap on Settings and Privacy

Choose privacy shortcut

Choose Manage Your Location Settings

Now, toggle to turn off "background location" - Stop Facebook tracking 

If you enable this setting, two things will happen- "You will share your location when you were not using the app, and you will allow Facebook to store the history of your exact locations."

"We are not making any changes to the options you have previously chosen, nor are we collecting any new information as a result of this update," the Facebook post reads.

To turn on their Location History setting, the 'Background Location Setting' is on." Those who had 'Location History turned off' - or did not turn it on at first - The new background location setting is 'on'. "

iOS users do not have to worry about such features, as Apple already offers iPhone users the option to block applications from using their location in the background when the app is not open.

If you are an iPhone user and have not already closed Facebook or any other apps - by tracking your location in the background, you can follow a few simple steps:

go to Settings

Select privacy

Choose "Location Services"

If you want to stop all apps from being tracked completely, turn off Location Services. If you want to limit this setting based on each app, tap on each app and select "Never" or "Using".

Make sure apps that don't require your location, such as most games, photo sharing apps, and editors, are set to "never".

Meanwhile, Facebook is also sending alerts to both Android and iOS users, asking them to review their location settings.

Thanks!