That's because it considers your account low-security until you enable two-factor authentication, which having a phone with SMS allows. The number isn't to fill out your profile, and has nothing to do with privacy settings. Facebook takes security very seriously, and it would be better for everyone's safety if everyone set up two-factor, just like having everyone around you vaccinated is better for you.
Re:How Facebook is ruining sharing
by throwaway64 on Saturday November 19, 2011 @01:36PM
(#3255856)
>The number isn't to fill out your profile
That may not be the stated purpose, but i am 100% certain they use it for profiling purposes aswell.
The number isn't to fill out your profile, and has nothing to do with privacy settings.
At least as far as users are concerned, right? I mean, it's not not being used to fill out your profile on the backend, either.
Two-factor via SMS is for dumbphones. Facebook should support RFC 4226 to allow smartphone apps to generate codes without communicating with Facebook.
They should support RFC 4226, as google does, but they still need to support SMS with the size and diversity of their userbase. Google offers SMS as well.
How long before every facebook user has a device that can do RFC 4226? I hope soon, but kind of doubt it'll happen this decade.
I guess that's one way to look at it, but your analogy is flawed. I'm mostly unaffected by anyone else having their account hacked, whether or not they've implemented two-factor authentication.
But I really believe they just want my phone number. Why do they tell me the security is "low"? Why not "medium"? What if I don't have a cell phone? Without giving them a number, I guess I live on a low security site? It's FUD, just like those popups telling me my security settings on my PC are "low", or that I have a "virus".
Another deceptive tactic? Apparently my account has "low security". So I go in and see what my settings are adjusted to. Everything how I like it (private). But the "low security" warning sits there, in perpetuity, until I give Facebook my phone number, apparently.