According to a big New York Times report, Facebook gave several tech companies, including Microsoft, Amazon, and Netflix, more access to users’ personal data than it ever disclosed to the public, including giving Spotify and Netflix “the ability to read Facebook users’ private messages.†That’s a pretty big breach of trust, especially for a company that is struggling to convince people that it cares about users’ privacy. The official Netflix Twitter account, for some reason, decided it was instead time for a moment of levity, writing that “Netflix never asked for, or accessed, anyone’s private messages. We’re not the type to slide into your DMs.†See, it’s hip.
When asked if the tweet was Netflix’s official comment, a representative gave Vulture the company’s statement, which is slightly more serious in tone than its tweet: “Over the years we have tried various ways to make Netflix more social. One example of this was a feature we launched in 2014 that enabled members to recommend TV shows and movies to their Facebook friends via Messenger or Netflix. It was never that popular so we shut the feature down in 2015. At no time did we access people’s private messages on Facebook, or ask for the ability to do so.†Other ways that Netflix has tried to make itself more social include making way too many Friends jokes online.