Facebook tries to curb vid and article auto sharing spam with 10-second rule

One of the things I dislike most about Facebook, and some of the recent changes is all the shared stories that turn up in my newsfeed that are automatically shared from other people. I know many those people probably don't mean to share everything they read or watch. I'd wager a bunch people start reading an article or watching a video, realize it's not what they thought, and leave before they finish reading it.

The problem is those links ended up getting shared anyway under the old system. Facebook has made some changes to crack down on all this auto-sharing spam. You now have to be watching a video or reading a story for at least 10 seconds before Facebook apps can auto share the activity on your timeline or newsfeed. Users also have to be informed when content will be auto shared, and you now get an option to opt out of sharing the video on the page where you watch.

I can only hope that means glut of Viddy and Socialcam video links I see on my newsfeed will be significantly reduced. You can see in the image above; it appears to be very easy to remove the video you watched from your timeline if you desire. I'm glad to see this 10-second auto share rule and opt out feature, what you think?

[via Techcrunch]