A 2009 study conducted by Sophos Security discovered that 46 percent of randomly-selected Facebook users accepted a friend request from a fake account belonging to a rubber duck by the name of "Daisy Feletin."[1]
The best way to keep unflattering information about yourself out of Google is to keep it off the Net. That means tightening up privacy at all your online hangouts: Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, etc. Be careful when you comment on other blogs and watch what you say in web forums, which are also indexed by Google unless the administrator has added a "do not index" tag to his forum. It goes without saying (but I'll say it anyway) Be careful what you post on your own Web site or blog.
Who's watching your facebook?
Fight Cyberslander...Preserve your integrity.
Netizen, Google Thyself!
Via Facebook's social engagement tools, spammers are able to execute what has been described as a "cocktail of attacks," perhaps directing users to fraudulent antivirus software capable of enabling a hacker to remotely control a computer; perhaps sending them to surveys from which they can earn a commission.
Facebook users can also find themselves directed to bogus online retailers hoping to pick up credit card details. Inadvertently befriending a fake account also unlocks access to personal tidbits that may seem innocuous but amount to a treasure trove for hackers seeking access to personal Web sites like bank accounts. They frequently hint at passwords and usernames, as well as the answers to common security questions.
According to security experts, these nefarious friends are overseen by a diffuse, elusive network of individuals located all over the world.
"Very often, these are executed by loose networks of folks who specialize in their particular niche and collaborate to attack, then make money off of the account," said Jules Polonetsky, director of the Future of Privacy Forum. "They know each other from spammer IRC [Internet relay chat] channels where they brag about exploits and alliances. It is not a particular giant spam company."
The unknown friends may also be covers for real people, such as law-enforcement agents on the lookout for incriminating information.
In a memo penned in 2008, the Department of Homeland Security's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services described the goldmine of personal information to be found on online social networks and instructed agents how to take advantage of people's "narcissistic tendencies" to sniff out fraud. [1] Do I Know You? Fake Friends Adding Fresh Danger To Facebook . Bianca Bosker
So how to remove the social networking albatross? Read on!
To begin the Facebook account deletion process: do not try to login to your Facebook account; you may want to clear your browser cache and delete your cookies so that you don't login inadvertently. Click the link below and follow the instructions OR bookmark this page for future reference.
WARNING!!! FB does NOT make it straightforward and easy to delete your account. Here, we look at how to deactivate as well as delete a Facebook account – and the difference between the two.
From Helium:
- A guide to deleting Facebook friends
- How to delete your profile on Facebook
- How to delete Facebook applications
One part of the Times Union article is definitely FALSE
Anything put online will follow a person forever, said Penny Perkins, a communications professor at The Sage Colleges, who teaches about social networking.That's BS! The Net CAN indeed be "wiped clean" -
"This is your personal brand, your reputation," Perkins said. "I wouldn't post anything I wouldn't be happy to see on a billboard on 787."
Many people, she said, don't understand that Internet postings are always out there. She pointed to deleted items on such sites as www.archives.org, which tracks web postings since 1995.
One of my blogs was deleted last year: you can't find it ANYWHERE! You can also peruse the case of Mai Shiozaki, whose images are just now beginning to resurface on the web. Funny thing though: Shiozaki IS on Facebook!
Read the entire acticle about Steve Valente from Averill Park.
Here's another "avenue of deletion" recommended by another blogger
facebook.com/group.php?gid=16929680703
and I'll throw ya a little bone or two:
Check your bandwidth (+ other useful tools)!
Internet surfers, proceed with caution!
Tags: facebook privacyk, online privacy, secure social networking, internet eraser, remove personal information from Google, delete facebook account
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