Did Facebook Inc (FB) Just Become a Stalking Service?

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When Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) set up a mysterious press conference this week, everybody wondered what wonders the social network might introduce. Could it be the long-rumored Facebook phone? A steroid treatment for its anemic advertising muscles? The tag line for the even was, “Come see what we’re building” — could Mark Zuckerberg play a literal joke and unveil plans for a new corporate campus?

The answer is, of course, “none of the above.” At best, we’re looking at a slight boon for ad sales — but at the cost of scaring away millions of active Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) users.

Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB)

The freshly unmasked Graph Search feature looks like a cross between Facebook’s deep reserves of user data, Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG)‘s information search skills (including contributions from a host of ex-Google employees), and some sleazy online dating service. The end result of this unholy crossbreeding looks like a stalker’s best friend.

The tool gives you unprecedented access to public Facebook Inc (NASDAQ:FB) data. The design idea is simple and makes plenty of sense: Make it easier to find Facebook-hosted information that meets your needs or answers your questions. Example queries include benign searches such as “people who live in my city,” or “music my friends like.”

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