A Wall Street Journal investigation found that many of the most popular “apps” on Facebook, a social networking site, have been transmitting user information to dozens of advertising and internet tracking companies. The information, when combined with internet user databases already held by several advertisers, provides identifying information about users as well as their friends.

The issue affects tens of millions of users who use these applications, including some of the most popular games like Farmville and Texas Hold’em Poker. Even information of users who have the highest privacy settings enabled were transmitted, violating Facebook’s rules. It is not clear, based on the Wall Street Journal’s investigation, how long this problem continued but a Facebook spokesman said that they are taking steps to “dramatically limit” the exposure of personal information.

Defenders of online tracking argue that information transmitted in this way is benign because it is conducted anonymously. In this case, however, the Wall Street Journal found that one data gathering firm, RapLeaf Inc., was able to connect the anonymous Facebook user ID that was transmitted by apps to their own database of users, which it sells to advertisers. RapLeaf said the transmission to other firms was unintentional and Facebook has said it is significantly limiting RapLeaf’s ability to use any Facebook-related data.

Facebook has been subject to several inquiries in the past months about their use of personal data. As recent as this month Facebook has made an effort to give its users more control over its apps, which privacy activists have cited as a potential hole in users’ ability to control what information is shared. It’s not clear if the developers of apps realized that data was being transmitted, and Facebook says it has disabled thousands of apps at times for violating rules its privacy rules.

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