Facebook to Sell Apps

Facebook unveiled a new hub for consumers to find games and other apps on the social network, including its first storefront for selling paid apps, in the company's latest effort to expand the ways it makes money from its massive audience. The new App Center, which Facebook says will launch in the next few weeks, comes as the company is preparing an initial public offering that would value the company between $77 billion and $96 billion. A key concern for investors is Facebook's slowing revenue growth, due in part to the widening trend of consumers accessing its service on smartphones, where Facebook provides limited ads. On the safety side, take note that Facebook will not be vetting these apps except those it actually sells itself. There will be a lot of pointers to mobile apps on other stores as well in the store. Buyer beware.

Banning Self Harm Posts

Instagram, Tumblr, and Pinterest all now have policies that ban “self harm” posts that condone or encourage eating disorders, self mutilation, or committing suicide. In December, the National Suicide Prevention LifeLine teamed with Facebook on a service that lets users of the social network click a link to begin a live chat with a suicide counselor or to report posts that might indicate suicidal behavior.

Winning Essays on Bullying

Several weeks ago for Parenting with Technology, I wrote an article about the backlash against the anti-bullying campaign that appears to be growing and discussed that it is hard to see how anyone could object to bullying finally coming under stronger scrutiny. To further buttress my arguments with those who wrongly think that all you have to do is physically strike a bully to get them to stop, I refer you to the essays that were submitted to a contest sponsored by Nicholas Kristoff of The New York Times. As one submitter wrote: “Today’s problem isn’t so much the bullying itself — bullying has been around for centuries,” says Paulina Puskala, 17, of Marquette, Mich. “The problem is that it is difficult to escape it. Technology-enabled bullies contain the ability to harass 24/7.” Many of the essay writers argued that adults are either oblivious to bullying or turn a blind eye to it. In any case, they say, students themselves have to take the lead in making bullying uncool. One site that was mentioned as being helpful to students trying to do just that is We Stop Hate, an organization described as “more than just an antibullying program. It’s a call to action to stop hate: stop hating on yourself, stop hating on others.”

Staying Off Facebook is Not the Answer to Privacy Woes

These days for most people, social networking seems like the easiest way to keep up with friends and family. Most don’t worry about fake offers, spam, and apps harvesting personal data, even though that threat is always lurking. However, recent research suggests that for the privacy-obsessed, not joining Facebook and similar sites, is no longer the answer. A quartet of German researchers was able to learn about people who weren't members of social networks by examining information posted online by their friends, according to a recent paper.

Should Underage Facebook User’s Parents Be Reported?

The growing number of underage students signing up for the social networking website Facebook has led one British principal to call for stricter penalties for the practice. Paul Woodward, a principal at a British elementary school, is actually proposing that parents of underage users be reported. It is an interesting idea and sure to get some conversation started, but it is very unenforceable. Facebook includes a minimum age in its terms of service agreement, but it is estimated that 38 percent of all children on the social networking site are under 13 — and 4 percent are under 6 years of age. Facebook says it removes approximately 20,000 underage users daily, but it is important to note that parents are often the ones creating profiles for their children.

Cyberbullying Revisited

One Florida school district is revisiting cyberbullying and in a recent workshop discussed that the issue is still tricky. A student’s First Amendment rights have to be preserved and victims have to demonstrate significant harm was caused by the aggressor's action. Florida Atlantic University professor Sameer Hinduja, co-director of the Cyberbullying Research Center, released a study last year on the dangers of cyberbullying among teenagers. He said on average a teen sends out about 3,000 text messages a month and phones can be dangerous weapons in the cyberbullying arena. In some cases, aggressors use technology to stalk, blackmail, extort or manipulate other students into saying or doing things against their will. Hinduja said that because of a number of suicides and high profile incidents, schools are becoming more aggressive in dealing with cyberbullying.

Covering Your Tracks on the Internet

“There are no secrets online,” writes Kate Murphy, in the Personal Tech section of The New York Times and she is right. Whatever email you sent in a fit of pique, those vulture videos you watched to help out a friend’s daughter who is a field biologist and that illness you checked out online – they are all part of an online profile of you that can be easily gathered. That information can then be stored, analyzed, categorized and synthesized and then sold as a package deal to data brokers who in turn can sell it without a “by your leave” to advertisers, employers, health insurers, or credit rating agencies. So what can you do to help cover your tracks on the Internet? Murphy outlines several ideas in her article, “How to Muddy your Tracks on the Internet”, to help readers try to figure out the best balance between cost, convenience, and privacy.

The Anti-bullying Backlash

As with all things, even the anti-bullying campaigns that have taken hold are in for some flak. The Wall Street Journal ran an article entitled "Stop Panicking About Bullies" with the subhead of "Childhood is safer than ever before, but today's parents need to worry about something. Nick Gillespie on why busybodies and bureaucrats have zeroed in on bullying." While Mr. Gillespie may be right that we are not in the midst of a bullying epidemic, there is nothing wrong with taking a serious look at bullying especially as it has been exacerbated by social media. Take a look at the Parenting with Technology column on this site, subtitled “Proud to be a Busybody” for a response.

New Service Rates Facebook Apps on Privacy Protection

PrivacyChoice, a research firm specializing in Internet related issues, has started a new service that evaluates how each of Facebook's top third-party apps respects consumers' privacy. Called Privacyscore, the free tool spells out privacy policies and tracking practices of more than 200 top Facebook apps, including games, work-related programs and sharing apps. According to PrivacyChoice, 140 different tracking entities routinely collect information about users of the top Facebook apps. Privacyscore's top score is 100. Deductions are made for sharing data with an excessive number of tracking entities, failing to honor deletion requests, failing to provide an opt-out choice or storing consumer data for long periods.

Online Data Sharing Concerns Consumers

Consumer Reports latest survey reveals that 71% of respondents had concerns about companies collecting and distributing information about them without their permission. 56% were also concerned about the data that companies retain even when the data is no longer useful. Over half of respondents said that they are worried about advertisers targeting kids with the data collected from younger Web users’ surfing sessions; while others worried that their activities would affect their ability to get jobs or loans.

When it came to questions about privacy policies, 42 percent said that they believe companies’ privacy policies are too long and complicated. They may be right. The Federal Trade Commission has found that the average privacy policy is 2,400 words long!