Facebook Outs Gay Kids To Their Parents

Misuse of privacy controls leads to fundamentalist parents learning of their kids' sexual orientation.

Bobbi Duncan, 22, and Taylor McCormick, 21, might have someday been ready to tell their parents that they're gay. But then Facebook went ahead and told the University of Texas students' parents for them.

 The two students' "fundamentalist fathers" learned of their sexual orientation after they were added to a discussion forum called Queer Chorus, and their addition to the LGBT-themed Facebook group was advertised via a Facebook update, according to reports.
 
Facebook apologized and said that users must continue to be updated about the site's "robust privacy controls," according to a story published by The Wall Street Journal.
 
In this situation, the discussion forums' privacy settings were set to "open," rather than "secret" or "closed," which means that their addition to the group was advertised on the site for all to see, according to SF Weekly.
 
Both outed users say that they used the site's privacy settings to the best of their abilities, but the news was still published, the newspaper reported.
 
Both students' fathers have since left threatening voicemails or angry Facebook updates lambasting "queers," the newspaper reported.
 
Copyright FREEL - NBC Local Media
Contact Us