Facecrooks Emerges From Facebook

 It is quite alarming today how technology could become a negative impact to some people.  Social networking for instance is a product of technology  so unheard of so many decades ago but with its emergence, seems like everyone who are computer literate and has access to the internet are hooked into it.  It is such a powerful tool against loneliness as it is to isolation especially to parents who worked in other countries  It successfully builds networks, connects friends aside from its heartwarming role that gives the family members separated by distance the chance to catch up.  Since its membership is free, it attracts more and more people and currently serves over 400 million users worldwide about 19 million of which are Filipinos.

But while social networking site’s aim is perhaps generally geared towards the positive aspect, there are just other creatures out there who took it as another venue for giving in to their evil energies. 

On the second thought, while there are really benefits of web technologies, one oftentimes wonder whether they really were invented for the sole purpose of social engineering.  Come to think of it, it really is incredible how quickly users are willing to share and accept information to and from people whom they do not and unsuspectingly took at face value that the individuals contacting them or making friends with them must be a trusted party.  Becoming part of somebody’s circle of trust need not have to undergo a lot of convincing on the part of the duping party.  A simple convivial statement is all that is needed today to elicit a positive response from a would be victim.

The most popular network site nowadays is probably the Facebook.  Let’s face it; we now live in the Facebook era where privacy is set by one’s own hand.  Sadly though, the power to connect also bears the inherent power to destroy.  Thus, we should not assume that nobody is interested in our online status, profiles and even our chats. Although some of these details may seem harmless, they actually provide rich pickings for criminals. For instance, our date of birth and where we live are enough for a certain fraud to set up a credit card in our name.

Hence, whilst most people wouldn't give this information to a stranger in real life, they will happily post it online where strangers can see it.  There are enormous opportunities for criminals that a nonchalant user actually provides in his/her Facebook account or in other social networking sites for that matter.

For we cannot discount the fact that criminals are also updating their ploy such that social networking is an easy target, it being a user friendly.

And so come varied news about the occurrence of crimes associated with social networking as Facebook.  People disguising as looking for friendships whose motives are actually searching for possible targets to whom they can steal or elicit their carnal desires. Incidence of this kind is long prevailing in foreign countries ranging from cases of murder, rape, pedophilia, bullying, assault, spamming and burglary.  It looks like Philippines might just follow suit because it looks like it has started to make a headline of its own pertaining to similar incidents. 

The risks highlighted with the use of social networking nowadays cannot altogether be solved by putting a stop to its use; rather, it calls for users to take a few basic steps and simple precautions to keep themselves, their families and/or businesses safe online.  One form of precaution is to use privacy settings on social networking.  Police authorities and IT security experts issued warnings to users to be more vigilant about the personal information they post on the web. But seems the evidence ­suggests that while the public isn’t growing any more internet savvy, the criminals are.

In the past, earlier forms of Internet technology were exploited.  If Facebook users continue to be nonchalant, it might experience the same fate, it being a logical choice for cyber criminals who wish to ply their trade with its huge number of users around the globe.

In the future, social networking crime will surely grow, particularly as social media aggregators become one-stop shops for criminals wishing to fully research and targets potential victims.  Looks like the weakest link will continue to be the human factor.