Facebook temporarily reversed its decision to make users' address and phone numbers available to apps with users' permission. "Over the weekend, we got some useful feedback that we could make people more clearly aware of when they are granting access to this data," Douglas Purdy, Facebook's director of developer relations wrote in the site blog. "We agree, and we are making changes to help ensure … [Read more...] about Update: FB holds off on that last privacy change
Headsup, parents! New privacy change at FB
Parents, the best advice for Facebook users at your house is, "Leave the contact info in your profile blank." That's the quick, easy end run around the new change, which allows apps to use your address and phone numbers if you give them permission to do so. That's the good news: It's opt-in – you choose to provide the apps with that info. The problem is, once FB users decide to install an app, … [Read more...] about Headsup, parents! New privacy change at FB
New CA law against fake profiles
California has updated its impersonation law to include online impersonation, or pretending to be someone else in email and social network sites. "Using a fake online profile or email address to harm others can lead to a fine of up to $1,000 and one year in jail," the San Francisco Examiner reports. The Examiner cites the view of one law enforcement officer that, on the surface, the law looks … [Read more...] about New CA law against fake profiles
Learning how to save lives in Facebook
In a very sad story reported in the London Evening Standard, hardly any of the 1,048 Facebook friends of Simone Back of Brighton, UK, did anything to try to prevent her suicide after she posted a status update saying goodbye, she was taking "all my pills." Her mother, who called the UK equivalent of 911 after someone texted her about the post, told the Evening Standard that no FB friends local to … [Read more...] about Learning how to save lives in Facebook
Amber Alerts on Facebook now
This makes sense – to extend the reach of missing-child alerts into social media. "Amber Alerts for missing children are now available as a news feed on Facebook," the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children announced today (here's coverage in WashingtonPost.com). It's really a sign of the times: Since people are now spending more time online than they are watching TV, according to a … [Read more...] about Amber Alerts on Facebook now