Are Social Networking Sites Dangerous?
Internet security is major news, especially when it’s violated. There have been a variety of different security issues recently about social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace, and Hi5. They have over 800 million members between them, but when it comes to security, it may only take one person to cause a breach.
Each of these top social networking sites release statements about both their privacy and security. What many people don’t realize is that security and privacy are actually two different issues which can often overlap. If the privacy information on a site is breached, private information can be seen without proper authorization. A privacy breach does not necessarily indicate that the site has other security issues. However, if security is breached, the effects could be disastrous for both the site and users of the site. A security breach happens when a hacker gains access to the website’s confidential language or coding. Such an event could result in identity theft, viruses, or other issues.
The different ways to use computers today really are astonishing. You can store your data on a variety of data devices like the RAID Storage devices. This is an important step in safeguarding your information from potential viruses, Trojans, malware, and other issues.
On October 4, 2005, the Samy worm virus, (also known as JS.Spacehero), infiltrated MySpace. Luckily for MySpace and their users, it was a comparatively innocuous XSS worm which incorporated the headline “but most of all, Samy is my hero” into the victim’s profiles. It turned out to be just a headache for MySpace more than anything else, but still to this day, thousands of profiles on the network still carry the “Samy is my hero” phrase on their profiles.
Despite the fact that “Samy” was pretty innocuous, it ended up being among the list of swiftest dispersing computer viruses ever. And it gave MySpace an unpleasant wake-up call about their security issues. MySpace has upped the security and safety of the site after the incident.
The simple truth is that it is how people use these sites that puts them at risk in the first place. The countless applications being added everyday often create security issues. And it doesn’t help that the sites don’t check applications before allowing them.
In reality the networking sites do not have sufficient security personnel to thoroughly check the numerous brand new programs sprouting up each day. The security teams of these sites have not been effective in keeping on top of their tremendous increase in popularity.
How to Protect Yourself on Social Networking Sites
You can help safeguard your private data on social networking sites simply by changing your security setting to ensure they are as secure as possible. Also, make sure that you never, ever post personal contact information on your page. And when it comes to apps, by all means, have fun. Just be careful not to “allow” any apps you aren’t 100% certain are safe.
Last but not least, make sure that you always back-up your computer data to make sure that you have the capacity to recover your data should you ever run into a nasty virus. For your best RAID Storage solutions, visit Jetnas.com. In addition to RAID Storage you’ll find JBOD, NAS RAID and NAS Storage devices, plus excellent customer service. Visit us today.
