If you're a Facebook user, some of your friends may have recently posted a status update titled "Privacy Notice." It goes on to declare in legal-sounding language that since Facebook is now publicly traded it can make public use of your private content—and if you don't repost the statement yourself, you are giving your implicit permission.

Sadly, you cannot protect your Facebook content with a reposted status update: It's a hoax. But you can protect yourself by taking control of your privacy settings; see our step-by-step video on how to do just that.

Facebook commented on its own privacy page about the hoax:

We have noticed a recent status update that is being widely shared implying the ownership of your Facebook content has recently changed. This is not true and has never been the case. Facebook does not own your data and content.

Facebook privacy page