On the Internet Your Reputation Really Does Proceed You

Your DFI (Digital First Impression) really does proceed you these days. Whether you are a person, place, brand, business or thing, people usually can look you up long before they meet or are considering you. Worried about your DFI or that of your kids as they prepare for the future? Take a look at some of the ways the damage can be done in this article called Your Reputation Online, Part 1. These days everything from where you went to school, what your political leanings are, who your friends are (and their candid remarks about you) and even nasty comments from former employers are all online along with every past legal entanglement, divorce, DUI, traffic ticket, or bits and pieces of the past that might have found their way into the police blotter in your local newspaper. Of course, we are all our own worst enemies, usually revealing more online in blogs and on social networking than even our enemies. Have you Goggled yourself lately to see what your DFI looks like?

Gene Wiki - A Vote of Confidence for Wikis

While the controversy about using Wikipedia as a reference for school reports because of questions of accuracy continues, researchers on human genetics have given the site a vote of confidence by creating 7,500 Wikipedia entries on different genes and are editing another 650 already existing entries. They considered an alternative - Citizendium, whose volunteer contributors are expected to provide their real names. Citizendium also asks experts in given fields to check articles for accuracy. But ultimately, the gene wiki researchers said, they chose Wikipedia because it is highly popular and the site's volunteer editors tend to quickly correct inaccuracies.

Internet Privacy- More Questions than Answers

Recent Senate hearings pointed out that there are far more questions than answers when it comes to web privacy. For example: If "personally identifiable information" is to be guarded by the law, what constitutes personally identifiable information? Should a person's numerical Internet address be considered private? If people ought to be informed about data-collection practices, what format should the notice take? (Web sites already issue long and convoluted terms-of-service agreements that most consumers never read.) And if a company builds a profile of a consumer, should the consumer be allowed to see what's in her file?

Another thing the hearings pointed out is that the Senators who asked the questions - some so convoluted that witnesses had to ask repeatedly for explanations - are not well enough informed themselves on the topic to understand the questions or the answers. So what's the solution? Let the industry regulate itself? Some critics of regulation say  that companies have a lot of incentive to keep information private. These days it would get around very quickly if a company was handing out private info that could only come from one source.

But it is rather odd to think about Web sites collecting information about where you travel online and what you do there. One senator likened it "to having someone follow a shopper around at the mall, jotting down what they looked at and bought as they moved from store to store." For most of us that's pretty mundane, but, to my mind, kind of creepy. (This entry is linked to the Washington Post and can be read for free but you will need to register.)

Staying Safe in the Land of E-Commerce

Some people swear by online shopping, others wouldn't be caught dead making that seemingly fateful click-to-purchase online. Making purchases in both realms has its pluses and drawbacks. The truth is that in both realities the middle guy may be the biggest threat. Out in the real world, for example, the wait staff or clerk has possession of your credit card out of sight just as when you make an online purchase you have to trust that your credit card info is going to the right people who will send you what you are looking for. Always pour over your monthly credit card bill to make sure you haven't been scammed by the middleman. For more tips, see Staying Safe in the E-Commerce Jungle.

The Feds Stalking Your Cell Phone?

The American Civil Liberties Union and the Electronic Frontier Foundation  filed suit recently urging a federal court to order the Department of Justice to turn over records related to the government's use of people's cell phones as tracking devices. While in an emergency all would agree that being able to pinpoint a person's location is a great feature, it is a little disconcerting to thinking that signing up for cell phone service opens one up to being spied on by the government, especially since media reports have indicated that some government officials claim not to need probable cause to obtain real-time tracking information from people's cell phones. That should give your kids something to think about - maybe being tracked by parents is the least of their worries, eh?

Identity Theft Risk Maybe Tied to Where You Live

There is an old real estate joke about location being everything and the same may be true when it comes to identity theft. While overall identity theft seems to be in a downward trend, depending on what surveys you read, mail and telephone fraud seem to be holding their own.  And interestingly enough, where you live -- rather than how you travel around the Internet -- can determine your chances of become an ID theft victim, according to a report from Javelin Strategy and Research. For example, citizens in Illinois, Delaware, California, Idaho and West Virginia are most at risk, while the Plains states and the Northeast claim the lowest incidence of ID fraud. States with the lowest incidents include Alaska, Utah, Nevada, Nebraska, South Dakota, Minnesota, Indiana, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Connecticut, New Hampshire and Maine. No matter who, where, when and why people are being scammed the cost of fraud per consumer rose overall by 25 percent, from $554 to $691 on average in 2007 and the telephone still seems to be the bad guys weapon of choice.

Some how this all sounds like a great poster contest for kids?

You Can’t Hide Anything

Have your kids figured out how easy it is to get "busted" these days? Cut school and it ends up on Facebook , or in someone's blog, or somebody sends an instant Tweet about it that everyone in the world can read, and suddenly you are busted. Little white lies just aren't little anymore either. You tell someone something and it can end up everywhere in nanoseconds to be challenged by someone else. For an interesting comparison between how easy it is to get caught out these days, compared to the way it used to be, read Getting Found Out, Web 2.0 Style for a fun narrative on how a skipping school movie like "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" is just so outdated these days. Of course, it doesn't mean that kids aren't going to stop trying.....

What To Do With an Old iPhone

Happy with you old iPhone but pondering buying a new one when they come out on July 11? Many people are wondering what to do with their old iPhone. An article on MacWorld News called "The Old iPhone and the Day After" has some ideas worth considering. But one caveat you should consider if you are contemplating selling your old iPhone. It's very hard to erase personal information from the NAND Flash memory in an iPhone, so selling it to a stranger could pose privacy problems. Still want to go with the new phone? Take a look at the article to see what other options they suggest.

A Survey Reveals Social Networkers Concerned About Digital Manners

A survey released last week by the Consumer Internet Barometer, a production of TNS and The Conference Board, found that common pet peeves among social networking regulars include lack of privacy and, more interestingly, lack of "manners." While the survey doesn't delve into much detail about what people mean by the lack of manners, it is not hard to conceive of what they might be thinking about. How do you turn down a friend request without hurting the requester's feelings? What happens if you categorize someone as a "teammate" when they consider you more of a close friend? How do you avoid offending someone who doesn't make the cut as one of your "top friends?" How do you politely ask your friend to stop bombarding you with countless invites for yet another application? When should you just pick up and give someone a call versus just blowing them off with a digital message? Would love to hear your thoughts on this in regard to you and your kids.

Flashy Facebook Page May Lower Privacy Walls

Facebook fanatics who have covered their profiles on the popular social networking site with silly games and quirky trivia quizzes may be unknowingly giving a host of strangers an intimate peek at their lives and those of visitors to their sites who take them up on the challenge to play. Every widget or application that is added to a site means handing over information to the developer of that software and suddenly large groups of people you don't even know can have access to your data and that of your friends. That's because MySpace and Facebook, the largest online social networks, let outside developers see a member's information when they add a program. More than 95 percent of Facebook users have installed at least one application, it seems. So think about keeping it simple - for not only your sake, but that of your friends. (This entry is linked to the Washington Post and can be accessed for free but you need to register.)