December 4th, 2007 Blaster
Sr Weekly: Volume 2 Issue 1
Thats right the Sr daily is back. But you may have noticed some changes. Well first off its not going to be daily anymore. Its now going to be weekly or semi weekly. This is due to the holidays and other activities going on with the staff.
So now that I got that out of the way I guess I can give you the scoop you want.
Well of course as most know by now we have upgraded our free hosting servers. This allows us to make more accounts and continue our great free hosting service.
We also have some surprises for you on the way. Something that me cat and mario are working on. It will be out soon hopefully.
Other then that there really isn’t anything interesting happening.
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December 3rd, 2007 DJB
15 reasons Facebook may be worth $15bn
Microsoft has invested $240m (£117m) in social networking site Facebook in exchange for a 1.6% share of the company. That puts a value of $15bn (£7.3bn) on a firm that has only been in existence three and a half years. So why does Microsoft think Facebook is worth $15bn? Here are 15 possible reasons….
1. The network has gone viral in the last 12 months, with more than 50 million users worldwide and a user base that is growing faster than great rival MySpace. According to Facebook, it adds 200,000 new users each day.
2. The average user spends 3.5 hours a month on Facebook - more than the average user on rival MySpace - which is increasingly attractive to advertisers.
3. Facebook is the current Web 2.0 darling - popular with ordinary users and “tech heads” alike.
4. US research reveals that Facebook users come from wealthier homes and are more likely to attend college than MySpace users - increasing that attraction for advertisers.
5. Microsoft’s investment makes them a serious player in the growing market of “social advertising”. Social network profiles are full of personal data that users voluntarily hand over, which is very useful for targeting adverts.
6. Sixty percent of Facebook users are outside of the US - so Microsoft’s investment buys access to a global audience quickly and simply.
7. Facebook is the new web: The decision to open up the network to outside developers turned Facebook into a destination for many uses, like messaging, photos and video. Of course, as Facebook is on the web it could never really be the new web.
8. Every major content firm with an online presence is either working on a Facebook application or has already launched one - from Google to the BBC.
9. According to a report, 233 million hours of work are lost each month in the UK due to staff looking at social networks. Advertisers can now target people when at their desks.
10. The openness of Facebook is attracting a wealth of talented developers who can launch their applications to millions of users quickly.
11. Facebook messaging is the new e-mail. Everyone feels stressed from a deluge of e-mail from unwanted people and companies. But Facebook messages are always from friends.
12. Facebook’s “status updates” have become the easiest way to let friends know what you are doing and how you are feeling at any given moment.
13. Facebook thrives on playful applications such as Pirates, Zombies, Super Wall and Top Friends, which have made the network a place to play as well as communicate.
14. Facebook is the acceptable face of blogging - you can reflect your life and personality online without being seen as a “blogger”, which often carries a geeky stigma.
15. Facebook is worth $15bn only because Microsoft says so. The value of Facebook is based on a 1.6% share of the firm being worth the $240m Microsoft paid for it. Microsoft and Google were in a bidding war for a slice of the firm and both companies have large pockets. This was not just business, this was personal, according to some analysts.
Source - BBC NEWS (originally posted in Oct 07)
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December 3rd, 2007 DJB
Millions of people have posted photos and personal thoughts on social networking sites. But do these sites provide rich pickings for identity fraudsters, or are they just a bit of fun?
The UK is Facebook’s fastest growing market
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Social networking sites have enjoyed an explosion in popularity in the few short years since they first appeared. The most popular, MySpace, claims over 100 million accounts.
Facebook, currently the place to be seen, claims 35 million people use its site to blog, catch up with old friends and share photos.
These sites are a magnet to the online generation, who are often sharing information of an extremely personal nature.
Fueling fraudsters
But the sharing of this personal information has created a fuss in the media, and there is a growing feeling amongst internet security experts that users posting so much information about themselves online is inviting trouble.
“Social networking sites, we believe, do have some dangers if people don’t handle their information properly,” said Neil Munroe of credit reference agency Equifax.
MySpace is the UK’s most popular social networking site
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“There is information there which it’s been proven that fraudsters will use to actually steal your identity, not necessarily on the internet, but in other areas.”
With this warning in mind it is astonishing to some just how much personal information is shared by unwary users.
“The sort of information that people need to avoid in public areas on social networks are things like their mobile phone number, their mother’s maiden name, their full date of birth, that sort of thing,” explained Chris McCafferty of MySpace.
According to Mr Munroe this is the basic kind of information that fraudsters will use.
“They will quite easily take that information and build up a profile to start taking credit out in your name or even take over your account. They could, for example, pretend to be you and take money out of your savings account.”
It is easy to avoid playing in to the hands of the people stealing identities - simply do not put any information that might be useful to a fraudster on your profile page, or anywhere on the web.
In the last year online banking fraud in the UK has risen by 40%, according to banking trade body Apacs.
Workplace worries
But it is not just identity theft that users should be worried about, the online age presents new challenges in the workplace too.
Many employers are checking job seekers out online to see what they do when out of the office.
Oxford University staff checked Facebook for disciplinary offences
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“When people are applying for jobs they should be very cautious and make sure that everything online does represent them in the best possible way,” warned recruitment agent Belinda Walmsley.
“The big no-nos are criminal activity or evidence of drug taking. No employer is going to look at a candidate where that is evident.
“Then you have the things that are seemingly innocuous, for example a simple posting about being too drunk to make it into work. Obviously if a prospective employer was to see that, they would really question whether you were the right candidate to join their firm.”
The issue of privacy is a sticky one. Take the case of University of Oxford university officials who trawled students’ Facebook pages, searching for evidence of extreme post exam parties where students have a habit of getting more than a little bit boisterous.
On the evidence of several Facebook photos the university engaged in disciplinary action against a number of students.
Taking control
Experts counsel people to consider their social network page as resembling an ad in a local newspaper and few would take out one to show off intimate details of their life.
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 People should remember that they are in control 
Chris McCafferty, MySpace |
So why do so many post so personal information online for the world to see?
“It’s important to remember that you are in control of how public or how private you want your MySpace page to be,” said Mr McCafferty.
“So you can make your entire profile private if that is what you want to do, and then only friends that you accept on your list will be able to see your profile.”
In a similar vein, Mr Munroe from Equifax recommends taking a steps to protect personal information.
“Make sure that you are using privacy guidelines that are on the site. A lot of people aren’t aware that the sites do offer privacy guards which you can use to actually lock down the people who can see your information.
“And don’t post things like when you are going on holiday,” he added.
Mr McCafferty agreed: “People should remember that they are in control. They are putting information up on sites. So don’t put information up that you don’t want the whole world to know.”
Whether people exercise control to avoid junk mail, stalkers or identity fraudsters, knowing what information about you is on the web is imperative.
If you would not give the information to a stranger, do not put it on the web.
Source - BBC NEWS
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