I just had to see what all the fuss was about so I signed up to Face Book recently. I was amazed to find that this phenomenon is not just limited to teenagers but that a surprising number of my more mature 'contacts' were already registered, many of them no doubt out of curiosity.
My apologies if you received an invitation from me - I won't be offended if you don't accept.
Obviously the issue of personal information and privacy is of interest to me so the article, Social networkers ripe for ID theft, again from Ian Williams, vnunet.com 23 Jul 2007, rang all sorts of bells and included some sensible advice from Equifax:
- Do not include common verification such as date of birth or mother's maiden name
- Use privacy settings on profiles so that only close friends can view the information
- Do not publish holiday dates or other information that could leave you vulnerable to break-ins
- Do not publish information which could ruin your chances of a new job, as potential employers often search social networking sites
- Be wary of everyone. Photos and profiles are often deceptive
I am delighted to say that one of my 'new best friends' is Richard Holway who is also interested in the corporate use of these social networks. See his blog on this subject here.
It is not surprising that organisations are trying to ban employees using these networks. I don't believe banning is the answer so I am exploring ways that we can use the PAOGA technology within social networks like Face Book to address these concerns.
Any suggestions?
