Recent updates to Facebook Inc.’s privacy policy will now allow the social network to track European users’ activity on the web, logging away information such as the links they click on and the websites they visit.

The changes to Facebook’s privacy policy went into effect over the weekend, and now the service has more power than ever to keep tabs on its users’ activities.

The social network has always kept detailed data on users from their Facebook accounts. Information such as page likes, friend lists, location data and so on are all useful for several facets of Facebook’s business model, especially targeted advertising. Now, the new privacy policy allows the site to gather information from users across non-Facebook websites.

The new tracking feature is partly optional, but all European Facebook users have been automatically opted in, allowing Facebook to follow users’ activity even after they have left the site.

Facebook also keeps track of information from “websites and apps that use our Services,” which includes any site that uses Facebook accounts for logins or any pages with Like buttons. It also includes non-Facebook services that are owned by the company such as Instagram or WhatsApp.

Users can opt out of some of the new privacy features on Facebook by visiting the Facebook Ads settings page. Here, users can opt out of certain kinds of advertising based on friend lists or shown on third party sites.

Criticism abroad

Facebook’s new policy has come under criticism in the U.K., and several Members of Parliament (MPs) have spoken out against the change.

“What this does is clearly put their financial interests ahead of the interests of their informed consumers,” Labour MP Helen Goodman told the Daily Mail. “They’re taking a significant step forward in terms of the amount of information they collect. It makes me feel very uneasy.”

Facebook receives criticism almost every time it makes significant policy changes, but the company maintains that its policies are designed to inform users about how Facebook works behind the scenes.

While users may opt out of certain targeted advertising features, those users would still see ads regardless. A Facebook spokesperson notes that the privacy changes will allow the service “to better serve more relevant advertising to you.”

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