The founders of today’s common social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn had absolutely no idea of the impact these social networking sites would have. What started out as a simple way for college students to keep in touch has become a worldwide network connecting not only individuals but businesses and organizations. This unexpected popularity has brought about a very important issue: SECURITY.

The ‘safety’ that users felt on these sites is slowly becoming questionable. These sites have become the places hackers and other ‘cyber criminals’ find their prey. The bottom line is everyone-moderators of these sites included must pay more attention to their online security.   You think your social networking site has done all they can to ‘ensure your safety?’

Security researcher Rishi Narang recently discovered a security flaw with LinkedIn’s use of cookies and, as a result, the site reduced the persistence of cookies it uses to identify users. Patches and updates from the social networks themselves occur on a daily basis in an effort to combat crucial security flaws. As of the writing of this article, in 2011, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter have undergone updates 528 times, with over 50 updates occurring on Facebook alone.

The fact is no matter how hard owners of these sites may be trying, it will be hard to keep up to pace with hackers.  Apart from that is the problem of confidential information finding its way to wrong hands. An example of this is of  Scott McClellan, the chief technologist and interim vice president of engineering for HP’s new cloud services business. Scott ‘carelessly’ posted the company’s plans on his LinkedIn page which wasn’t supposed to go public yet.  Though the comment was later removed, the damage had clearly been done.

How can a ‘safer’ social networking site be created then? No doubt, these sites are doing all they can to try and update their settings. As users though, there is much that can be done to try and minimize the chances of becoming a victim of these cyber attacks.

Being careful before clicking on something our friends’ have posted will be a big step. We may be trusting by nature but clicking on unknown links may open the way for hackers to access our information.

Another factor has to do with confidentiality. Though you do have the right to rant and rave on your page, avoid mentioning things that you don’t have the ‘right’ to share. This is especially true when it comes to company policies or updates. Keep your personal social networking sites PERSONAL.

Keep yourself well-informed as to updates these sites have made security-wise.  You may have to update your profiles’ security settings to keep yourself protected.

For more information, read the source article.

Photo from seo-services.com

You own a particular company or brand and want to get a username or domain with your company’s exact name only to get the ‘username unavailable’ or ‘domain already in use’! Though there may be a chance that there really is a company with a name like yours somewhere out there, usually, so-called ‘social media squatters’ are the culprits.

These squatters may come in two categories:those who really like your brand and want to promote it or those who just liked the sound of it and got the username or domain. What can be done about these squatters? You do have the right to the name it being your business but in the digital world ‘first come, first serve’ is followed.  Is there anything that can be done

Request a user name. Facebook and Twitter are careful in allowing just anyone claim user names that belong to well-known brands. You can send them a request. The only problem is that it may take a long time to be processed. You will have to give some proof that you are indeed the ‘owner’ of this brand.

How about if that name has already been taken somehow by a squatter? Then it will depend on which kind of squatter has it. For those who really are genuinely interested in promoting your brand, it is possible that you contact them and come up with some agreement. You may for example offer to compensate them if they do a good job.

As for the ‘real’ squatters who carelessly used your brand, you can offer to buy the name or domain from them. Most will be willing to do so for a reasonable amount of money.

Getting a desired username can be challenging or straightforward depending on the situation. Sometimes, you need to use a hammer, and somethings it’s just a matter of asking nicely.

Read the complete article here.

taken from thetechherald.com

For many parents in the 21′st century, Facebook, Twitter and the like have become terms that they hear from their kids daily. If you are informed parent, you probably already know what these sites are all about.  The issue that has presented itself now is how young or how old should kids be before they are allowed to enter these social networking sites. Should there even be such an issue? What’s the big deal anyway?

The bottom line is social media can be useful in communication. These days, even teachers are using these sites to post assignments and even exams so it’s not really all about fun anymore. With this in mind, should parent’s allow their minor kids to get connected to these sites? The key is teaching them to be responsible. Like one of the Coronado Mum’s Council members Morgan Benzian puts it:

Rather than turn the issue of social media and the Internet into a debate, I think it’s a wonderful opportunity to adopt an open-door policy and encourage communication. We should teach our children about how to use social media and the Internet effectively and with caution.

Since there is  an increase in the instances of cyber attacks, parent’s ought not to feel like they are invading their kid’s privacy if they set some rules about social media. Here are some practical things that can be done in this regard.

• Take charge. No doubt, your kids’ won’t like the idea of having you among their friends but since they are underage and are still under your control, you have the RIGHT to do it. Make them understand that if they want to get involved with these sites, they would have to come to terms with the fact that you will be  there to monitor them. The truth is, simply becoming their friends on Facebook will be good enough reason for them to ‘behave well’ online.
• Be open. If you discover that they have posted some ‘improper’ photos online, let them know. Kids are usually unaware of the long term effects their posts or photos may have. Many company’s are now carrying out background checks with the use of these sites. Explain to them that their reputation will be affected by what they post there.
• Teach them respect. Kids may  have the notion that they can get away with stuff online since it isn’t in person. The truth is whatever you do on these sites says a lot about you. Make your kids understand that positing harsh comments may get them to fights and ruin their reputation.

Most kids today have grown up with the internet. Social networking has in effect become part of their lives and we can’t see any hints that this is about to change. You can still be a ‘cool’ parent and let your kids’ use these social media sites while protecting them at the same time.

Read the source article here.

As more people create Facebook profiles (500 million and growing), and sign on to the many social media sites available today, hiring managers are finding they have new opportunities to get background information on job candidates.

But in between the good and the bad information is plenty of data that is illegal to view if you are making a hiring decision. And even if a hiring manager honestly does not use off-limits material, once they have seen it on Facebook, it can become grounds for a lawsuit.

Is it right to use social media to get to know your applicants in the first place? The bottom line is what you do with the information you get. If you need it to verify your applicant’s isn’t that something that you have right to access? Here ae some ways you can make sure you legally use these social media sites to do background checks.

• Be open. Getting information behind people’s backs isn’t being very honest. Be up front and let your applicants know that you’ll be checkign out their facebook or Twitter profiles. This way you’ll be able to get authorization.  Once you do, find good or bad signs about the person. If they post ‘questionable’ photos for example this may be a ‘red light’ for you. Or if they are involved in some kind of charity work. Make a list of the information that you’ve got from their wall

• Don’t believe everything you see. We all know how ‘deceptive’ the information social media sites can be. People don’t reveal their ‘real’ selves on these sites for obvious privacy reasons so don’t base your judgment on whatever you see.

For more tips on this, click here.