Social Networking Risks: How safe are you with revealing personal information in social networking sites?
photo by: kentbye
Last month, officials from Interpol and the UK government gave out a general warning that criminals might be taking a keen interest in what you leave behind in social networking sites. They were pointedly referring to the unbridled popularity of social networking and to the dangers social networking might expose users to.
Criminals, they warn, might be looking to test the territory of social websites to enact crimes like pedophilia and phishing scams. The danger of identity theft in social networks was particularly highlighted as swindlers can use bits and pieces of information posted online by users to steal their identity. The warning should bring the spotlight on the loopholes in social networking security and how users can avert dangers arising out of them.
Dangers of Social Networking
The concern of authorities is understandable. Social networking has caught on like a rage in the internet world. This is best illustrated by the fact that MySpace, within years of setup, has grown to be the third most popular website on the internet with a base of 98 million users.
This overwhelming popularity can lead people to turn a blind eye to the risks that it involves. More alarmingly, the Social Networking Report released by the UK government agency OFCOM reveals that most subscribers to these services consciously ignore security as a concern.
A survey conducted by the agency revealed that most users excuse themselves from worrying by assuming:
- the website to be responsible and therefore taking care of all security issues.
- personal ignorance or technological incompetence to be able to act on their concerns.
- that personal information they submit would be hard to find online.
Tips for Safe Social Networking
There is a need for users of social media to be cautious before posting personal details online. Bits and pieces of information collected here can be joined together by fraudsters to steal their identity or to commit fraud. In a recent instance, a man downloaded photographs of a Marine Colonel from a social website for the armed forces. He used these to impersonate the officer and dupe women in an online dating site off their money.
Social networking sites are also
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- The Top Secrets of Social Networking Scams
- Inside Study : Facebook becoming books of Phishers and Phishing scams
