( CNN ) -- Facebook unveiled changes to its terms-of-use document on Friday , tweaking earlier drafts in an apparent effort to ease users ' concerns about privacy and how their information is used . The proposed changes to the networking giant 's Statement of Rights and Responsibilities come after the plan was opened up for user comments last month , and just weeks before Facebook is expected to go public in a stock offering some expect could value the company at $ 100 billion . Front and center in the announcement was an effort to explain that the way Facebook collects and shares data is not being changed . `` Some of our users and a number of journalists mistook the proposed update to our SRR for changes to the way we collect or use data , '' Facebook said in a post on the site . `` Our Data Use Policy ( which used to be called our privacy policy ) governs how we collect and use data . We are not proposing any updates to that document at this time . '' Little has slowed Facebook 's ascent to the top of the social-media world . What began as a dorm-room project for Mark Zuckerberg and his Harvard classmates grew into a phenomenon that has amassed more than 800 million active users . But if Facebook has had an Achilles heel , it 's been concerns about how user data is used . Because it 's a free service , Facebook depends on targeted advertising and a cut of the micro-payments users make in games and other apps running on the site . Users ' activity on the site is used to paint a picture of them , and shared by Facebook to help those advertisers pick their targets . Web privacy advocates , including some government officials in the United States and elsewhere , have repeatedly expressed unease with the sheer amount of data Facebook possesses about its users and how that data may be used . It 's obvious that the company wants to tamp down user concerns about that in advance of its arrival on Wall Street . In its filing to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission , the word `` privacy '' was used 35 times . That document , which is required for companies filing to go public , was obviously largely positive about Facebook 's upside . But when required to acknowledge potential downsides , Facebook wrote that if users ever widely became concerned about their privacy and use of their data , they could lose some of them . Facebook writes that it must avoid adopting `` policies or procedures related to areas such as sharing or user data that are perceived negatively by our users or the general public . '' CNNMoney : Facebook strips 'privacy ' from new 'data use ' policy explainer . In a set of bulleted posts Friday , Facebook outlined the tweaks it has made in response to user feedback and explained items it says raised concerns . -- In a change first noted last month , the document now uses the term `` Data Use Policy '' instead of `` Privacy Policy . '' Facebook says this reflects a change that was made last year because they `` believe the name is more descriptive of the information the document provides . '' -- Language that said `` you or other that can see your content and information '' was removed for a different definition of how and when apps can access data about your friends . It adds links to more information and how users can control that . -- Facebook also clarified language saying that people should not `` tag users if you know they do not wish to be tagged '' in photos . That passage does n't change how tagging works , but is merely meant to be a guideline , the company said . -- The changes remove a line saying that Facebook reserves the right to deny or limit access to users outside the United States . The site says that line was unclear and meant to reflect places where services are legally unavailable , or places where Facebook is banned . The document also included a not-so-subtle swipe at one of Facebook 's chief competitors . `` Unlike other Internet companies , we propose updates to our SRR and give our users an opportunity to comment before they go into effect , '' Friday 's announcement said . '' Your insights and perspectives are really valuable to us , enabling us to respond to your questions and make substantive changes to address your concerns before changes are implemented . '' Earlier this year , Google ( which has launched social platform Google+ as a Facebook rival ) rolled out significant changes to its privacy policy . While Google went out of its way to publicize the changes to users , feedback was not as aggressively sought and did not appear , at least publicly , to lead to any major changes . Facebook users can comment on the latest round of proposed changes until April 27 , the post said .
Facebook unveils , and explains , proposed changes to its terms of use . Post says that the way user data is collected and shared will not change . Announcement comes as Facebook is preparing its Wall Street public stock offering .