The social media giant may show you just how much time you spend using its service.

Eagle-eyed engineer Jane Manchun Wong found code buried within Facebook's Android app showing the social media giant has created an as-yet-unreleased feature called "Your Time on Facebook," which displays how much time you've spent on the social media site.

The "Time Well Spent" movement, which was started in earnest around 2013 and has gained steam in recent years thanks to the Center for Human Technology, has sought to force tech companies to rethink how they design their apps in an effort to address user complaints and surveys that found social media users increasingly distressed about how much time they spent on social media.

The main culprit users and other tech companies point to is Facebook. Other companies are creating features on both iOS and Android that allow you to check your app usage and time spent, with Apple even mentioning Facebook specifically at its recent developer conference in reference to apps you may want to limit your time on.

The potential Facebook feature, called "Your Time On Facebook," was confirmed by Facebook to TechCrunch. "We're always working on new ways to help make sure people's time on Facebook is time well spent," Facebook told Josh Constine.

According to Manchun Wong -- a computer-science student at the University of Massachusetts -- the unreleased feature will allow you to see just how much time you have spent on Facebook per day and give you the option of setting daily or weekly time limits. She also discovered earlier this month that Facebook was planning something similar for Instagram called "Manage your time."

Limiting screen time

Apple made smartphone app usage an integral part of its keynote presentation at WWDC this year, highlighting the Screen Time feature in iOS 12 that will give users information on app usage and allow you to set time limits for every app. Google is doing similar things with the upcoming Android P update, with an even bigger focus on general phone usage, even creating a feature that would allow users to set a time when your phone automatically goes into "Do Not Disturb" mode.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has leaned into the idea of reducing time on the social media site, with all the criticism aimed squarely at his company.

"Time spent is not a goal by itself. We want the time people spend on Facebook to encourage meaningful social interactions," he said in November.

But Joe Edelman, who has been working with the Time Well Spent nonprofit organization, disagreed with Zuckerberg's assessment of the issue, writing in a Medium blog post this year that the Facebook CEO's desire to get back to "personal moments that lead us to connect more with each other" was shortsighted and did not address the core issues plaguing the site's users.

"If the simplified actions and relationships weren't designed with a users' particular values in mind, then using the software can make living by their values more difficult, which leaves them feeling like their time was not well spent," Edelman wrote.

"Designed to addict us"

"As users, we end up acting and socializing in ways we don't believe in, and later regret. We act against our values: by procrastinating from work, by avoiding our feelings, by pandering to other people's opinions, by participating in a hateful mob reacting to the news, and so on."

The Center for Human Technology says that while the amount of time spent is a concern, it's how that time is being spent that underpins the negative feelings people may have after using these websites.

"Snapchat turns conversations into streaks, redefining how our children measure friendship. Instagram glorifies the picture-perfect life, eroding our self worth. Facebook segregates us into echo chambers, fragmenting our communities. YouTube autoplays the next video within seconds, even if it eats into our sleep," the center wrote.

"These are not neutral products. They are part of a system designed to addict us."

*this article was featured on Download.com on June 25, 2018: https://download.cnet.com/blog/download-blog/facebook-is-creating-a-personal-timer-to-curb-your-social-app-addiction/

The tech giant now gives users the ability to transfer or delete all of the data it has collected through its programs, apps, and search engines.

Microsoft said it will give all of its users across the world many of the same protections enshrined in the EU's impending General Data Protection Regulation, which comes into effect on May 25.

The passing and enforcement of the GDPR has become somewhat of a watershed moment for privacy as consumers gain a fuller picture of the data tech companies collect on a daily basis. In a statement, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella laid out the plethora of ways they gather information and either use it themselves or offer it to other companies.

Nadella said Microsoft collects data on your web browsing and online searchers, places you go using map apps, Windows 10 and any of your online services, fitness and health apps, any ads you click on, sign-in, and payment data. The firm also leverages any connected device sensors you may have in your home or car, according to the statement.

But users now have access to a privacy dashboard that allows you to easily regulate or opt out of any data collection. You can delete all of your search history and data or move it somewhere else.

"We believe privacy is a fundamental human right. As people live more of their lives online and depend more on technology to operate their businesses, engage with friends and family, pursue opportunities, and manage their health and finances, the protection of this right is becoming more important than ever," Julie Brill, corporate vice president of Microsoft, said in a blog post. "Today we are announcing that we will extend the rights that are at the heart of GDPR to all of our consumer customers worldwide. Known as Data Subject Rights, they include the right to know what data we collect about you, to correct that data, to delete it and even to take it somewhere else."

Other tech giants have struggled to comply with the regulations soon to take effect, and have waffled on whether their users worldwide will be given the same rights and options as those in the EU.

Just last month, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg was criticized for demurring when asked whether US users would get access to GDPR rights. In response to an uproar after his comments, he said, "We intend to make all the same controls and settings available everywhere, not just in Europe. Is it going to be exactly the same format? Probably not."

Analysts and journalists have noted that despite some cosmetic changes, Facebook still makes it very difficult for users to opt out of its robust data collection efforts. In their review of Facebook's privacy changes, TechCrunch noted that "the fact that the button to reject the new Terms Of Service isn't even a button, it's a tiny 'see your options' hyperlink shows how badly Facebook wants to avoid you closing your account."

"It seems obvious that Facebook is trying to minimize the visibility of the path to account deletion rather than making it an obvious course of action if you don't agree to its terms," TechCrunch later added.

Microsoft is also gaining business through their GDPR compliance services, which are available for businesses of all sizes.

Many tech companies will likely release new service agreements on Friday and have already made changes to how they notify you of what data they collect and share with third parties.