56 replies to this topic

[Evile]

Ok, so meeting random people you meet on the internet can sometimes be dangerous. Well, what the hell? Who in their right mind just goes out and meets a complete stranger anyways? That's just stupid. Stupid people deserve stupid things to happen to them. I doubt someone would just shoot you for no reason though, that's just ridiculous. They'd most likely rape you or something. Why would you lure someone out just to shoot them, when you can easily just shoot a random person on the street. Sketchy people are dangerous, sketchy people on the internet are the exact same. Get some common sense and make proper decisions and you won't get into any stupid situations.

/rant

[Eddy]

Ok, so meeting random people you meet on the internet can sometimes be dangerous. Well, what the hell? Who in their right mind just goes out and meets a complete stranger anyways? That's just stupid. Stupid people deserve stupid things to happen to them. I doubt someone would just shoot you for no reason though, that's just ridiculous. They'd most likely rape you or something. Why would you lure someone out just to shoot them, when you can easily just shoot a random person on the street. Sketchy people are dangerous, sketchy people on the internet are the exact same. Get some common sense and make proper decisions and you won't get into any stupid situations.

/rant

That is totally true. It happened at Glasgow and London.

[Bourkification]

Facebook is just a tool. Facebook itself is not dangerous, but a small percentage of people who use it are. Here in Australia, a few weeks ago the death of a teenage girl was blamed on her befriending two strangers over Facebook. They organised to meet, and the two strangers murdered her. This is an example of the danger of people who use Facebook, not Facebook itself. Coming to the conclusion that Facebook is dangerous is just completely naive and ill-advised. It is like saying if the meeting was organised through a phone call, that it is the phones fault, and that all phones are dangerous. Abuse of phones, and prank phone calls has happened since it's inception, the same with hate mail and the like. Clearly the danger lies not with the tools we use. The problems arise because of lack of education regarding the tools, mixed with underlying social problems.

[Mitchfork]

Back on the topic more: Facebook has completely revamped their privacy settings (as of today) and it is much easier to protect the information you use. You can finally block your profile information from being accessed by applications (if you could before, it was well-hidden), disable "instant personalization" (basically licensing Facebook to give information to certain sites) and even control whether your profile appears in Google searches.

[Koopa]

Even I must say I approve of the latest changes facebook has made - they're moving in the right direction, but they're not quite there yet. The pressure put on them in the last weeks has definitely made an impact.

Stupid people deserve stupid things to happen to them.

I couldn't agree more - but, there's still a problem with children. If they're too young to really understand, and their parents aren't up to date on new technology, there could be a problem. Even at primary school age nowadays, there are enough classes whre everyone's on facebook and if you're not, socially at least it's as if you didn't exist.

That's not Zuckerberg's fault, but I do blame him and facebook for actively encouraging putting your personal data online for everyone to see. There was a time when the rule was don't give out your real name, certainly not your address or photo - on facebook, technically you're breaking the rules and could be banned for using a made-up nickname (of course that doesn't ususally happen - they've got far too many users to effectively police that).

It's as if the subliminal slogan was 'privacy is dead' - the euphemistic and official version is of course 'the default is now social'. (And that's an actual quote from Zuckerberg when the default for some posted content changed to 'everyone'.) And so, the message goes out that it's the norm to have your information available and to befriend anyone you stumble across online. Privacy is for weirdos and outcasts. I'm not saying this is wholly facebook's fault - it wouldn't have happened if people didn't play along - but they do their best to promote it.

[Radien]

Facebook should not be used by anyone. It's DANGEROUS. From what I know, it is.

You mean "from what I've heard." You heard it all secondhand.

I'm just saying that some people give out their information. But then what happens to them? Mostly getting shot when they meet.

I think I need to call your attention to the words you are using. "Mostly" means "more than half of the time." So you're saying that more than half of the people who give out their information and meet in person get shot in the face?

I KNOW that's not what you meant, because it's ridiculous. But you need to learn how to voice your thoughts correctly. If someone misunderstands you when you make an error like that, it's not necessarily their fault.

There is some people who change their voice to sound like a girl or a young boy. This can easly trick someone. So Facebook isn't dangerous. It's the people that are.

Obviously, no one claimed a website is stabbing people in the face. Yes, it's ultimately people who are the problem. But Facebook could be doing things that make you more vulnerable. See?

You may be worried about meeting people from Facebook who may be violent... but a more realistic fear is identity theft. If your information is easily accessible, someone online could use it to impersonate you. Will this happen to "most" people? No. But the risk is there. That's why we object when things like this happen.

Another problem is employment. If you have a job, does your current or future employer have any right to read your private Facebook page that you use at home? I say: not if you don't want him to.

All they do is sell information that people willingingly provide. All in all it's not evil, because again, people are willingingly offering up that information. They obviously don't make it to well known (though now the cats out of the bag I suppose), but it's not really evil as much as just a smart profitable business decision.

What you should work on is spreading awareness that they do this and that people should perhaps keep that in mind when they join 50 million groups on Facebook describing themselves.

So for comparison, would you say that if I opened a bank account, and the bank took all the information on my form and posted it publicly on the internet, it'd be okay, because I "willingly provided it?"

It's not that cut-and-dry. People give their information to companies such as Facebook only on condition and trust: trust that the company will use the information only the way they promised to use it. If the company uses a "bait-and-switch" privacy policy, they violate that trust.


Yes, it's wise to be careful about what you say even when a conversation is supposed to be private. But that doesn't mean it's the person's "own fault" when a company violates their privacy. Blaming it on the user is like giving the company a blank check to do whatever it wants.

[Eddard McHorn Van-Schnuder]

Eh... Facebook isn't something I use too much of the time, as I prefer to meet up with my friends, and if I need to reach them, my mobile phone easily does the trick.

I don't use any applications, I rarerly update my profile and the only thing I really do there; is accepting friend invites from people I know, and reply to any messages people might have sent me. I never send out messages, because, as I've already mentioned, my phone really doesn't have any trouble getting me in touch with the people I want to be in touch with, even quicker than Facebook could hope. Do I like Facebook? No, not at all. I despise it's stupid premise when it comes to spamming me with all kinds of crap. No, I am not interested in knowing that my friend took an IQ test and landed on the score of 75, and I most definitively do not want to take the very same IQ test myself. (True story by the way, yes, my roommate apparently has a lower IQ than Mr. Forrest Gump himself, something I myself find rather... non-surprising

Of course, I guess you can turn off email notices if you really wanted to, but then I'd have to check in every day to know if I've gotten any messages or anything, as I do know people who for some reason don't know how to dial my number. Then we have my friends off-shore, and when it comes to these, apart from MSN, Facebook is usually the only way I can communicate with said people, as calling them can be expensive. Will I delete my account? Nah, I doubt these allegations against Facebook are non-biased, and therefore you really cannot judge the entire thing just from reading something some blogger feels. You have to remember that Gizmondo, which is the website said article came from, is a blog, much like Kotaku. (Kotaku being a partner, I believe) When it comes to blogs like this, the opinions within it are the ones of the writer, and they're not necessarily facts. I'm not saying all of what has been brought up in the post is false, but I think it's a good idea to step onto the sidelines and take a look at the entire situation from a neutral point of view. Facebook for me isn't what it is to most people, but that's fine with me. If you want to spend time on a website, be my guest. Heck, I'm doing that myself, just not with Facebook. I've found it to be a great way to get in touch with people I haven't met in a while, thus I don't have their number, and it has also helped me and my old classmates in setting up a reunion party, so while I don't like Facebook overall, the messaging feature, and the fact that so many people uses it, is reason enough to give me an interest in having my account there.

Just to make it clear, I am not saying that Facebook isn't what this article claims it to be, but it's not going to affect me in any particularly bad way, and unless this changes, I see no reason to rid myself of said account.

[Eddy]

Facebook is just a tool. Facebook itself is not dangerous, but a small percentage of people who use it are. Here in Australia, a few weeks ago the death of a teenage girl was blamed on her befriending two strangers over Facebook. They organised to meet, and the two strangers murdered her. This is an example of the danger of people who use Facebook, not Facebook itself. Coming to the conclusion that Facebook is dangerous is just completely naive and ill-advised. It is like saying if the meeting was organised through a phone call, that it is the phones fault, and that all phones are dangerous. Abuse of phones, and prank phone calls has happened since it's inception, the same with hate mail and the like. Clearly the danger lies not with the tools we use. The problems arise because of lack of education regarding the tools, mixed with underlying social problems.

That's what I really mean. ^ Something like this

[Radien]

That's what I really mean. ^ Something like this

Everything that could be said about JimmyB's example is no more true of Facebook than it is of the rest of the internet.

Meeting someone that you have never met in person before has its risks...but there are easy ways to negate them. Bring other people into the picture. Talk to the other person's friends. Meet in a public place. Make sure you know a lot about the person and have talked on the phone. If a minor is involved, make sure an adult is present, in addition to the above precautions. Most people who get themselves into trouble ignore these safety rules. We tend to gloss over that fact.

The sites that are designed for strangers to meet each other are largely dating sites. But we don't hear hundreds of horror stories about them. In fact, it seems to be catching on pretty well. The majority of people online are just... well... normal people.

But Facebook isn't a dating site -- it's a different beast entirely. It isn't intended for meeting strangers. It is intended for getting BACK in touch with friends you already know, this time online. That's how the entire network is designed.

So getting back to the topic, the problem isn't social networking. The problem is how Facebook is being managed. And there's nothing wrong with pointing fingers when someone's acting very shady.

Besides, I'm not worried about someone finding out where I live and knifing me in the bathroom. I'm worried about identity theft, inappropriate information being passed to the wrong people (friends, relatives, coworkers, bosses), and the immoral use of private information for corporate financial gain.

[Eddy]

Well, the day is getting closer. But there are some things I don't understand why we need to quit Facebook. It could be the connections, viruses, trojan viruses, slowing down or how some people use them.

I use windows live anyway so I don't know that much about Facebook.
(I know I kind of overeacted in those other posts, I had a horrible week)

[Radien]

Well, the day is getting closer. But there are some things I don't understand why we need to quit Facebook. It could be the connections, viruses, trojan viruses, slowing down or how some people use them.

The day is getting closer? Depends on what you're afraid of. I'm afraid that the end of internet privacy is coming, and I hope it will be stopped.

I use windows live anyway so I don't know that much about Facebook.
(I know I kind of overeacted in those other posts, I had a horrible week)

What is Windows Live again? Doesn't it have a browser that can access Facebook?

No problem. Hope the weekend's better.

[Moosh]

It's not the end of internet privacy, Radien. When that comes, we can all take shelter at 4chan...

[Mitchfork]

Because some of the topic was turning into more of a debate a bout Facebook privacy, I moved a few posts to this Debate Forum topic. I invite anyone who wants to debate Facebook's privacy practices to take your opinions there, and keep this thread more on the topic of how you're handling your individual Facebook and whether you'll be participating in Quit Facebook Day.

The day is getting closer? Depends on what you're afraid of. I'm afraid that the end of internet privacy is coming, and I hope it will be stopped.

Now that's something I can agree with you on. I am more or less anonymous here and on other sites and I appreciate that anonymity.

It's not the end of internet privacy, Radien. When that comes, we can all take shelter at 4chan...

I think that's what I would call taking the greater of two evils.

[Eddy]

The day is getting closer? Depends on what you're afraid of. I'm afraid that the end of internet privacy is coming, and I hope it will be stopped.
What is Windows Live again? Doesn't it have a browser that can access Facebook?

1. The day is getting closer. The 31st of May.

2. Windows Live doesn't have a browser that can access Facebook. Windows Live is better than Facebook too because you can add people to your list and you can't have conversations with strangers if you don't want them to.

[Adem]

2. Windows Live doesn't have a browser that can access Facebook. Windows Live is better than Facebook too because you can add people to your list and you can't have conversations with strangers if you don't want them to.

And strangers can freely converse with you against your will over Facebook? Not the last time I checked...Sure, they can send you a PM but that's the same with almost any website in general...

Edited by Rem, 30 May 2010 - 11:45 AM.