Facebook urged to add 'panic button' for children

Updated on : Tuesday, April 13, 2010

LONDON: A British child protection agency said it has pressed Facebook to add "panic buttons" to its pages after the murder of a teenager was linked to the site.

Jim Gamble, chief executive of the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP), said the social networking giant did not agree to his demands outright at a meeting in Washington but he felt they were moving in the right direction.

Speaking after a four-hour meeting Monday, Gamble said Facebook was close to "doing the right thing" but urged the website to turn "words into action."

"I felt that at the end of what were lengthy and at times tense negotiation we are able to move towards a position. They are one small step away from doing the right thing," said Gamble.

"I am more optimistic than when I came. They are not saying no, that is very clear. But they were equally direct and they came with their own agenda.

"There is no doubt they are looking to improve their position around child safety and we recognise that. What I am looking for is turning words into action."

The showdown came after controversy in Britain over Facebook's refusal to include a "panic button" on its pages after the conviction of a serial rapist who used the site to lure and murder a teenage girl.

Peter Chapman posed as a young boy to lure 17-year-old Ashleigh Hall to her death in northeast England.

Calls have since grown for the inclusion of the buttons -- which allow youngsters who feel threatened online to quickly contact a number of sources of help, such as CEOP or anti-bullying helplines.

Politicians, police and anti-bullying groups have voiced outrage that the online giant will not bow to demands to include the system.

Gamble said: "In our view they are experts at creating a fantastic online environment but they are not experts in law enforcement, the power of deterrents and the reassurance it brings for mums and dads."

Facebook tightens privacy on third-party programs

Updated on : Friday, February 19, 2010

SAN FRANCISCO: Facebook has given users more control over who gets to see video, virtual cards and other digital content shared using third-party programs at the leading social networking website.

Content sharing tools the site launched for profile pages in December are being extended to applications that outside developers make for the online community, according to Facebook engineer Ray He.

"Maybe you don't want all of your friends to see the humorous greeting card you just posted from an application," He said. "Now, you can set that post to be viewable only by certain friends."

In contrast, someone trying to rally support for a charity using a Causes application will be able to adjust privacy settings to spread posts as widely as possible.

"There are now granular privacy options that enable you to personalize the audience for each piece of content you share through applications," He said in a blog post.

Drop-down menus near lock icons in a Publisher tool on profile pages let people select sharing options ranging from "everyone" to "only friends" and "custom."

"These new controls give you the power to determine who sees the content you post to Facebook through any third-party application," He said.

Content posted through outside applications without specified sharing preferences will default to "Posts by Me" settings designated at the social networking service.

"You may also start to see additional prompts in applications asking if you'd like to set privacy for certain pieces of content that differ from your default setting," He explained. "The choice is yours."

Facebook's more than 400 million members are required to dictate settings with a software tool that lets them specify who gets to be privy to each photo, video, update or other piece of content uploaded to the website.

The tool lets Facebook members determine accessibility to posted content, such as status updates or pictures in categories designated "Friends," "Friends of Friends," "Everyone" and "Customized."

Facebook members can select privacy settings for each post by using lock icons next to "share" buttons on profile pages.

Facebook gets more Bing

Updated on : Saturday, February 6, 2010

SAN FRANCISCO: Microsoft said Friday that Bing will power Internet searches for Facebook's 400 million members in an arrangement that returns control of display advertising to the social-networking service.Bing had previously powered online searches on US Facebook pages.Microsoft will provide Facebook users full access to Bing features as part of an "expanded cooperation in search," according to Bing general manager Jon Tinter."You will start to see the fruits of our expanded relationship show up in the Facebook experience over the weeks and months ahead," Tinter said in a blog post.The companies mutually agreed that Facebook will take over selling display advertising posted at the website because it "just made more sense" given the unique nature of the website, according to Tinter.Microsoft's control of display advertising served up at Facebook stretched back to shortly before the US software giant bought a 1.6-percent stake in Facebook in 2007 for 240 million dollars.That arrangement was inked in a contract that was up for renewal. Microsoft launched its new Bing search engine last year.

Groom updates Facebook, Twitter in wedding

Updated on : Saturday, December 5, 2009

LONDON: Social networking sites cast spell on millions around the globe. The manifestations of which came to the fore, when a wedding in Maryland was proceeding in the traditional way until it was time to kiss the bride.

At nearly every wedding, there’s that picture-perfect moment when the couple seals the nuptials with a kiss.

This moment is usually preceded by vows to love and obey. However, Dana Hanna of Abingdon, Md., took the time to whip out his cellphone and update his relationship status on Facebook and peck out a Tweet, declaring he had just been married. (He also handed a cellphone over to his wife to do the same.)

Lucky for you the whole ordeal was posted on YouTube -- by Hanna himself.

Hanna explains on YouTube that he did it for laughs and that the gag was a surprise to everybody in attendance except the minister. This would explain his wife’s look as he pulled “his” and “hers” cellphones from his tuxedo pockets.

“This was just done to be funny -- we really don't Facebook THAT often :),” he wrote on YouTube. “I have a lot of family scattered around the country and we all use Facebook a lot to keep in touch.”

Here's that tweet from the altar: “Standing at the altar with @TracyPage where just a second ago, she became my wife! Gotta go, time to kiss my bride. #weddingday”

Hanna’s Twitter moniker is TheSoftwareJedi. And looking at some of his recent tweets, it looks like he’s caught some flak for wanting to keep the world updated on his personal life on a second-by-second basis.

“To all the criticizers of my video out there questioning my sanity: You don't get it. I was having fun at MY wedding! Loosen up, have fun!".