Top 10 Tips For Safe Social Networking

Congressman's Antony Weiner's very public downfall had all the earmarks or a memorable and slacious scandal. He was a rising political star, she a porn star with some tech savvy. Together they shared one or more promiscuous, and weiner thought, private online exchanges that would be his undoing. Weiner made a host of mistakes, but was mostly felled by astoundingly bad misjudgment about social interaction on the web. What happened to former congressman weiner is, without a doubt, a cautionary tale, but it should also serve as a lesson in for everyone about social media. Here are 10 tips to help you avoid your own personal Weinergate.

1. Don't assume your digital correspondence is private.
Our memories are faulty. What we see and hear is often misheard, or misremembered. Computers have perfect memories. What you say online, what you post, is a perfect reproduction of the original. It can all be saved, it can all be retrieved or recovered (Google Search, in particular, can index everything), Facebook, e-mail, instant messages, Twitter DMs can all, one way or the other, be copied and shared.
2. Don't post anything you don't want others to see.
Congressman Anthony Weiner perfected the "take a picture in the minnor" pose. He always held the smartphone in just the right place and had his body posed just so. It's a gift. The most common photo you see on Facebook of most America teens is also the mirror shot. Thankfully, most photos are tame, but we've all seen enough leaked naughty pics of starlets to know that people just can't resist the temptation to share a saucy photo with their current paramour. If you don't want your parents, friends and co-workers to see these shots-don't take them and don't share them with anyone.
3. Manage your privacy settings.
No one is going to stop using social networks, so let's at least close up the Swiss-cheese-like security holes in each of them. Services like Facebook often start out in sharing mode. You want dig in and make sure that what you do share to your Facebook friends cannot be shared outside your social circle. Groups, by the way, are a good thing and will help you and your friends keep the conversation to a chosen few. In flickr,a service that will share first. You have to remember to restrict photo viewing to friends and family.
4. Share with fewer people.
Twitter, Facebook, even good old fashioned e-mail, make it super-simple to share thoughts with larger and larger groups of people> Many on Twitter actively seek to grow their lists of followers so they can share more to many. It's a wonderful thing, until you accidentally share the thing you never wanted to with everyone. Look at your lists of friends, e-mail contacts and lists. Twitter followers and start culling. Cut the lists down and start sharing less with a much more trusted group of people.
5. Clear out old accounts.
Part of living the online social life style is signing up with every new social network in existence. They're all so much fun and so interesting. Problem is they all ask for your info and typically are sucking in information about your other social activities on other sites. Over time, you stop using many of these services-we typically only use two or three at a time- but the remnants of your former self on these now disused services remain. Go clean house. Shut down the accounts and regain control of your digital existence.
6. Keep a record of your own correspondence.
Since you know that everything you write and post online can be copied, and will persist even if you delete it, start keeping records of your own digital correspondence. Keep all personal Tweets, important e-mails and key personal interactions on Facebook. Be sure you have a copy of all photos you've posted. People you've corresponded with should not be the only ones who have this data. Having it all at your fingertips will give you a more global view of how you comport yourself in the digital world-and proof in case anyone tries to misrepresent what you've done online.
7. Don't say anything to anyone online that you wouldn't say to their face.
We get very brave online. We yell (ALL CAPS) and say nasty things to other people. In real life (IRL) we'd never be that bold. The rules should not be different online. Use good sense in IRL and online. If you're really angry, take a deep breath, count to ten and then take a short walk. When you sit back down in front of your computer you'll realize that sending that e-mail, making the Facebook post or Tweeting that bit of venom was a stupid idea.
8. Don't share your location.
I don't have a problem with location-aware services, but I would turn off all broadcast features that tell the various social networks exactly where you are at any given time. Also, do not post a note on any social network that you're going on vacation. This is an invitation for criminals to visit you home.
9. Don't post pictures of your children.
If you have not managed your privacy settings in Facebook, you simply can't post personal photos. Do you want people outside your inner circle of family and friends to know you have young children?
10. Children under 13 should not be on these social networks.
Your children will start asking for access to social networks long before they become teenagers. Just say no. Children, in particular do not understand how emotion and intent get mixed up on social network entries and things can quickly spiral quit of control If they press, put them on Club Penguin, it's safe, fun and will likely keep them happy until they turn 13. Permit them to join social networking sites for kids

Top ten tips for safe social networking from : http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2387174,00.asp

Muslim Social Networking Sites

IkhwanBook is one of many social networking sites for Muslims that have recently sprung up. Photograph Khaled Desouki/AFP/Getty Images

Facebook has little to fear from muslim social networking sites. Sites like IkhwanBook.com and Muxlim fulfil a desire for more conservative forum but are regional and limited in scope. 

The Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood's IkhwanBook states that it is "an islamic social networking website, committed to the principles of our religion". Finland-based muxlim consolidates a network of services which include a search engine, a torrents finder and a Muslim MySpace, and aims to "connect the world's muslim communities to each other, and to the wider world, through shared online experiences". South Africa's muslimbook defines its objective as being "to provide a platform for all muslims to create a quality network as an alternative to the anti muslim facebook".

The emergence of Muslim social networking websites, and there are more than those mentioned above, is an interesting phenomenon that can perhaps be attributed to both a desire to produce a more conservative forum for discussion with stricter regulations (read: monitoring) as well as, in the case of the muslim brotherhood, to create a familiar-looking forum for existing and new sympathisers.

It should come as no surprise that networks and websites would emerge to cater to a particular cultural group; after all, even global social networks customize their settings culturally. Timothy bataillie, of Belgium-based Netlog, explains that "there are some extra challenges in terms of content moderation in the Arab region. We installed a moderation team that monitors traffic coming from the Gulf region. If they check pages from people outside the region, the website will display a warning notification", to warn users that they may be exposed to content potentially deemed offensive for local standards.

Those muslim social networks are simply taking the logic a step further rather than hoping for the cultural localization and customization of the website, they are establishing new ones.

IkhwanBook, which belongs to Egypt's principal political opposition force, the Muslim brotherhood, is expressly - perhaps too bluntly - politically oriented, so much so that during its first months of operation, a banner on its homepage would take you to the website of the National Association for Change, a political opposition coalition, and ask you to sign the association's petition. Technology professional Tarek Shalaby was quick to point out to the weakness of online security on IkhwanBook "anyone, upon signing in, can have access to all details of users and group members". A fatal mistake for a website that would logically be  particularly keep on protecting the identities of its members, not only from malignant internet users, but also from political components who are likely to be interested in knowing what discussions might be taking place on an IkhwanBook website.

throughout the revolution and in its immediate aftermath, the discussions on IkhwanBook website were largely political, though not necessary geared towards the political participation of the Ikhwan. But since then the mundane has rapidly regained the member's attention.

IkhwanBook site was launched in early July 2010 as a beta version, and its original website, IkhwanFacebook, made no effort to conceal its inspiration. IkhwanBook sees itself more as a complement than a competitor to Facebook - it actually allows signing in via Facebook Connect for Facebook Users.

DEspite their claims and wishes to the contrary, these social networks are both regional and religiously limited in their scope. IkwanBook - with its subtitle of "One world unites us" - has a primarily Arab membership , with a strong showing from Indonesian users. And despite its assertions that "You don;t have to be a Muslim to be a Muxlim", discussions on Muxlim are overwhelmingly in English, and largely target Muslims living in Europe and the US, while MuslimBook finds its members from within its local South African market.

All things being equal, it's doubtful these websites are hoping to be the next big thing in social networking, the weak membership numbers make it quite obvious. Besides the lack of innovation - the only "new" aspect is the stricter moderation - the demand for "clean" social networking hasn't produced the kind of site the creators may have hoped for. Most users are quite happy to be part of a more open and less monitored social network such as Facebook, even if they are offended by some of the content. After all, it doesn't seem that the current 705 members of delete group fuck islam or we all will leave Facebook have followed up on their ultimatum - the objectionable group is still there.

Original tittle "Facebook has little to fear from Muslim social networking sites" from : http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/belief/2011/may/31/muslim-social-networking

Social Network Sites and Small Business Opportunities

Social networking online or social marketing is booming in small business and for the entrepreneurial.Blogs are covering multiple genres from personal blogs, business blog and marketing blogs. Technology is a new tool for personal contact and business. Now is the time for small business owners to explore and expand their business on the social network sites.

The development od Web 2.0 tools allows for the extention beyond basic email, and chat with tools like yahoo messenger, MSN messenger, Google talks, and skype that allow for interactivity, instant connection in virtual worlds where business is the key ingredient.

If we go to wikipedia.org we saw that A social network ia "social structure made of groups that are tied by one or more specific types of interdependency, such as values, vision, ideas, financial exchange, friendship, kinships, dislikes, conflict or trade". A social networks provide a platform to expand a presence and create a place digitally.

Social network sites are tools to show what you are selling or the service you are providing. There is nompromise when it comes to the importance of content on social network sites, Do you have seen that content is king of site.

The Nielsen Company, showed through studies consumers spent about five and half hours on social network sites ranging from Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn. This is an 82% increase from past 3 years when users were spending just over three hours on social network sites. Looking at the globalization of social networks and blogs they are the most pupular online categories followed by online games and instant messaging.

The success stories of small business can be found for many business like E3 Business Group headed by Antony Butler. In just over two years E3 Business Group has over 70 business members and partnerships with 100 Black Men of Jacksonville, the Harlem Globetrotters, Taco Bell Foundation, and boys and Girls Club of America just to name a few. E3 Business Group focus on Twitter, Facebook, and Blogging. Journey Into Womanhood-Empowermentresources, empowermentresourcesinc.org is a rites of passage program for girls age from 9-17, that focuses on their healthy transition from girl to young woman. The vision of Elexia Coleman-Moss, Founder and Executive Director, using a web presence, Twitter, Facebook and blogging to share the contributions that this wonderful program provides to the community.