Danger of Social Media
In this blog you will see some real examples from web which are showing how Social networking Sites are harming our daily lives.
As the popularity of social media sites (such as Facebook, Twitter and MySpace) continues to explode, stories about the danger of social networking are piling up. Here are some examples I collected from web.
1. Tweets and Loss your Job
A waiter in Beverly Hills was fired for updating her Twitter updates. In his tweets, he complained about actress, Jane Adams, who he says skipped out on her bill and didn’t leave him a tip. He said her agent later paid her bill. The waiter was fired two weeks later. That may seem like an extreme case, but people have been fired for blogging about work, blogging while at work, even for calling in sick and then posting on Facebook. If you are using any social network, assume your boss is watching everything you say and do.
2. Social Networkers Are an Identity ID theft Dream
Social networking is a dream come true for identity thieves -- millions of people sharing endless amounts of personal information right out in the open. According to PC World, 33% of social network users have at least three pieces of information posted that could lead to identity theft.
Think about the types of things people share on social media sites…their birthday, address, kid’s names, pet’s names, mother’s maiden name, previous address, where you went to school. Besides being used to steal your identity, this information can also give thieves the answers to some of the most common security or password questions used on your personal accounts.
Yes, social networking is about sharing, but that doesn’t mean you can blindly violate basic rules that help protect you from ID theft. (Shred any and all solicitations you receive not just credit card bills and personal papers.)
3. Burglars Loves Where about Updates
Would you stand up in the middle of a crowd of strangers and announce that you’re leaving on vacation for three days and then tell everyone your address? Of course not, but that’s exactly what you are doing if you share such information online. Burglars are now using Twitter/Facebook to find victims. One Arizona man tweeted to 2,000 followers that he was heading out of town and came home to find someone had broken in and stolen thousands of dollars’ worth of video equipment he used for his business.
Even saying you are running to the mall, going out to dinner, etc. is too much information.
4. Prepare for Bigger Insurance Premiums
A leading insurer in England
Teenagers are especially likely to reveal personal information, leading the insurer to warn parents that they could face higher homeowner’s insurance premiums if their children are online.
5. Use Facebook for fun and lose your Benefits
On a deeper level, Blanchard's story indicates the growing popularity and danger of Facebook spies. Blanchard, a Quebec employee of IBM, has been on long-term sick leave since Valentine's Day 2008, when she was diagnosed with major depression. For the ensuing year and a half, she has lived off monthly payments from her health insurance company, Manulife. Recently, however, those payments stopped. The reason was Manulife got into her Facebook profile.
On the site, Blanchard posted pictures of herself relaxing at the beach, hanging out at a Chippendales-style club, and generally having a lot of fun. Although Manulife has stated that "we would not deny or terminate a valid claim solely based on information published on websites such as Facebook," Blanchard claims that an agent from the insurer blamed the photos for the termination of her benefits. She has gone to court to have her benefits reinstated and is seeking $275,000 in damages from Manulife. Her next court date is December 8. Obviously, attempting to diagnose a psychiatric condition based on a handful of photographs is a fool's errand. But Blanchard's case echoes a growing tendency to use social media and seemingly private internet sites to evaluate employees. Eight percent of employers say they've fired staffers for postings on social media sites, and 17% have disciplined employees for violating blogging or message-board policies, according to Proofpoint, an internet security firm.
6. Phishing on Twitter
Few month back twitter users were the target of a huge phishing scam. Scammers sent direct messages (DMs) or Tweets that included a generic message such as “You’re on this video” or “I think I see you here” in order to get people to click on a link.
The link took those who clicked on it to a fake Twitter page that asked them to log in with their username and password which the scammer then used to hijack the victim’s account.
7. Twitter/Facebook/MySpace Can Be Infectious
Fake Twitter profiles have been used to spread malicious software.
To lure in victims, scammers use fake celebrity profiles or news about celebrities. The posts look legit, but infect your computer with malware that lets the scammer use your computer to send spam, install spyware, steal your identity or launch attacks on other computers.
8. Your career check
A study by Harris Interactive found that 45% of the employers they questioned are using social networks to check out job candidates before hiring them. That’s a pretty significant percentage. But here’s an even more surprising number: 35% of those employers decided not to offer a candidate a job because of what they found on an applicant’s social networking page.
Bad-mouthing your last boss online? Posting questionable pictures? If you are on the job hunt, be sure to review your pages and profiles and make sure there isn’t anything there that can cost you a job.
9. Revenue Agencies/IRS wants to follow you
As the budget gets increasingly pinched, revenue agents are getting more aggressive in their pursuit of tax revenue. In fact, some states are even using information posted on sites like Facebook and MySpace to track down tax dodgers and dig for unreported income.
In Minnesota
While the IRS refuses to say whether or not they are using social media to find tax evaders, it’s best to assume that they’re watching everything you post.
Makes you want to be a little more careful the next time a stranger asks to friend you, doesn’t it?
9. How Lawyers Love your Twitter/Facebook/MySpace pages
Are you involved in any messy divorce? You must clean up your Facebook page.
Lawyers and private investigators routinely troll social media sites as part of their research for any case. Such sites are a treasure trove of evidence, especially when they are looking to:
Prove adultery. Perhaps the woman you suspect of being your husbands' mistress tweets about the fancy new jewelry she got, or about an expensive vacation she just took.
Hunt down alimony. An ex-husband says he can’t afford alimony but tweets about his new job or raise or his brand new car.
Collect evidence for a custody case. A women fighting for full custody of her children claims she doesn’t drink or smoke, yet posts a picture of her smoking at a bar on her Facebook page.
Prove harassment or fraud. Copies of nasty or threatening messages left on an ex-boyfriend’s Facebook page make great evidence.
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