I’m as sick of writing about it as you are sick of reading about it. But because Facebook has become a societal juggernaut: a massive inexorable force that seems to crush everything in its way, we need to discuss it because it’s messing with lots of functions of society.

We should all now know that whatever you post on Facebook is not private. You may think it is, but it isn’t. Even though you may have gone through all kinds of privacy settings and locked down your profile, Facebook has changed them up internally so many times that they may have defaulted to something far less private then what you previously set.

Furthermore, no matter how private you have set them to, if you friend someone who you don’t know (like that human resource officer), they see what’s “private” and anyone on the “inside” can easily replicate anything you post to the world.

The activist groups waging what amounts to an undeclared war against the social-networking site for the last year, complete with no fewer than three letters to federal regulators claiming Facebook’s actions are illegal said that they’re hardly ready to declare a truce.

Attacks targeting Facebook users will continue, and they could easily become even more dangerous. Computerworld reports “There are limitations to what Facebook can do to stop this,” said Patrik Runald, a U.K.-based researcher for Websense Security Labs. “I wouldn’t be surprised to see another attack this weekend. Clearly, they work.”

Websense has identified more than 100 variations of the same Facebook attack app used in the two attacks, all identical except for the API keys that Facebook requires.

What does this mean to you?

For crying out loud stop telling the world you hate your boss, neighbor, students’ teachers, or spouse and you’d like to boil a bunny on the stove to teach them a lesson. I guarantee even if you are kidding, someone won’t like it. What you say/do/post, lasts forever.

Stop playing the stupid 3^rd party games. When you answer “25 questions about whatever” that data goes straight into the hands of some entity that you would never have volunteered it to.

Make sure you PC is secured. Keep your operating system up to date with security patches and anti-virus and don’t download anything from any email you receive or click links in the body of any email. Once you start messing with these files you become a Petri dish spreading a virus.

Robert Siciliano personal security expert to Home Security Source discussing Facebook scams on CNN.

Tags: adt, expert, home, identity, security, systems, theft

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Comment by Robert Siciliano on June 5, 2010 at 12:52pm: Calm down Justen. Ive written a 100 articles on Facebook and have said all the what you should shouldn't do in 10 different ways. This is another piece to bring attention and raise awareness.

And you really should back up you statements with fact. When you wrap statements in quotes that means the author said it verbatim. Which I didnt, so your interpretation is skewed and you look even less than intelligent. And if you go around accusing people of selling snakeoil, and you having diarrhea of the mouth, you should look in the mirror at yourself and ask why you talk to people like that.

Comment by Justen on June 5, 2010 at 12:33pm: I don't think you're giving good advice at all. Knee-jerk statements like "don't use 3rd party apps" or "stay off social networks" is the internet version of teen abstinence programs. Besides that you're selling snake oil: privacy does not and has not ever existed for anyone anywhere in history.

What you should be doing is saying: anything you say or do on the internet is likely to be found out about by people you don't intend. This is not the worst thing that could happen, nor is it someone's responsibility to "fix". Don't record anything that you don't want anyone, anywhere, at any time to get hold of; once it's recorded, what happens to it is completely out of your control. This is not right or wrong any more than gravity is right or wrong, it's just a fact.

Here's better advice: think of data safety like the first rule of firearms safety - "always treat the weapon as if it is loaded". Even if you "know" it's not loaded, you behave as if it is. This helps you form safe habits - you don't get in the habit of treating it casually. Likewise even if you "know" the data you're transmitting or receiving is safe, behave as if your mom, your boss, your pastor, your wife, your neighbor, and your government will find out about it tomorrow. If you *must* take risks, think about them carefully - what will it cost you *when* (not if) other people see it? Can you cope with that? Do you care? Should you? Is what you're getting out of it more valuable than what you'll lose? Start thinking this way and you will start treating your data and the network with the proper respect. It's not about paranoia, it's about forming healthy habits, just like with the gun.

Comment by Robert Siciliano on June 5, 2010 at 11:13am: "Why do you care so much ... seriously - why?"

I dont know. Its in the blood. I hope you have things in life you are passionate about too. Its kinds why we are here. Maybe you like football or knitting. I feel the same way with Led Zeppelin.

Comment by SD Anderson on June 5, 2010 at 9:51am: Why do you care so much ... seriously - why?

Comment by David Thomas on June 5, 2010 at 4:39am: Excellent advice on an emotive subject. However it obviously comes from someone with a little age and experience. Todays internet community think they're imortal and can't be damaged. The reality doen't sink in until ,much later, sometimes too late!

Comment by Robert Siciliano on June 5, 2010 at 4:17am: Great comments everyone. David P (???!!!???) anyway, I FEEL YOUR PAIN.

Comment by Jack Caffiene on June 5, 2010 at 3:31am: The Internet, in general, even with the most updated anti-malicious attacking software, can never be highly secured.
There is no such thing as a perfect and secured system because when you make something, you know what it's limitations, advantages, and disadvantages.
For example, if I want to ride my car from point A to point B, I can reach my final destination depending on factors: 1- Traffic. 2- Distance. 3- Car oil/gas. 4- Drivers' skills.
Now, apply the same concept on the computers but with different factors in "SAFETY": 1- Safety of webs according to the contents. 2- Proper software available against the proper attack in the system. 3- Computer users' experience in programming. 4- Server protocols according to it's "privacy" for others.
One way or another, everybody in the Internet is connected so there is no way you can keep your data safe.

Comment by Souang Tellei on June 4, 2010 at 10:19pm: Mr. Bennett, if I wanted the benefits of FB or MySpace per se that allow me to interactively relate online with my friends and family but without using the FREE*-ness of FB and MS, are there smaller sites that we could use? I kind of think about it this way. I'd rather (and I do) a lot of banking with Credit Unions, it just feels tight knit and safer than going with say JPMorgan Chase. I know I know... my e-mail address book will keep me in touch with my family. If I use Yahoo or Google Mail, am I putting myself at a greater risk than communicating through 'networking' sites? Is there any completely foolproof way to safely swim the web without being eaten alive by sharks? Yes, the internet is an ocean. :P

Comment by David Pinkerton on June 4, 2010 at 9:05pm: BP Oil spill oil leak flow. 5-31-2010
The leak that was, now it’s huge till they seal it better??
Most wells over 7,000 feet you can expect 3,000 psi or higher. Normal pressure of a well is .465 psi per foot depth + or minus depending on rock formation. This well is 18,000 feet from surface. 18,000 X .465 = 8,370psi well. I can’t find the well pressure anywhere, a BP secret I guess for cover up. This is a more efficient horizontal drilled well cutting across many vertical fractures and most likely has a 1 psi per foot or 18,000 psi well in a rock formation.
The leak that is there is most likely is a total of ½ inch dia. across the crack in the bent over 7” diameter pipe. That’s putting out 5,000 barrows of crude a day or 210,000 gallons at 3,000 psi. with the help of other leak down the pipe.
** That’s about a 5 gallon bucket a second. The leak on the camera looks like a 40 psi. leak on a 1 inch hole on the pipe line, and 2 smaller pin holes.
Cutting the pipe off the top is a sure cure for Pandora box catastrophe. I hope the engineers are not out of school with little field experience, which I have seen happen many times working in the gulf coming up with crazy ideas. Get this if its 3,000 psi and you open the top you are letting 200 - 250 times the volume of oil /gas. That’s 5,000 X 250 = 1,250,000 barrows a day in a conservative way or potential.
The leak already has turned out less gas to oil. The above scenario is a estimate or 5 Exxon Valdese oil spills per day if they do not plug a secure plug/ 100% way to clamp the top on the riser with the their new idea. Most likely the pipe is a little egg shaped after cutting, so securing any machine screwed insert will be extremely hard to handle, or maybe no fit will happen, and at 3,000 psi. Other wise anything over the well will just get blown away including 2-5 ton peaces of equipment. Off course an open valve plug will have to be first, because nothing over high pressure is possible except an open hole pipe like a special valve.
You saw the flames going 250 feet over the rig well that a lot of psi. or gas mixed with oil. The first few days of the explosion the rig was burning the majority of gas and oil.
Bottom line each 7 minutes working on the new plan will be equal to the now leak. Of 210,000 gal per 7 min. If some type of night mere could happen, which always seems the case, fill in the lines. I prey they know the facts it’s better to suck out the oil buy a bell then risk the Pandora box. Witch will cover the whole gulf in a month, sending oil to England by the Atlantic Gulf stream currents.
Oil Spill Flow in Gulf 6-3-2010
Atlantic Gulf Stream above calculations I just made by looking at video with no book.
Today I got real formulas from a book.
Unexpended Catastrophes happen from pilot error. Using Pocket Ref. by Thomas J. Glover, page 420-421
Minimum oil escaping after cutting pipe is 950-1045 gal per min. or 1,436,400 at almost 0 psi. In other words: if the oil came out of the riser and went up 7 inches and fell back to the ground. In this case oil is lighter than water, so you see it go up. Or 1020 X 60 (hour) X 24 (day) = 1,468,800 x 90 days till August plug. If you look at it this way.
At 10 psi it’s 4640 gpm or 6,681,600 gal. per day
At 20 psi it’s 6528 gpm or 9,400,320 gal. per day or multiply 1.406 by 10psi
At 40 psi it’s 9280 gpm or 13,363,200 per day or multiply 1.42 by 20psi
Total Exxon Valdese oil spill 10,981,600 million gallons.
BP claims 210,000 gal. per day or takes 51 days to equal Exxon Valdese
Do the math your self. Double the diameter of pipe= 4 times volume. Double the pounds per sq. inch in pipe almost doubles flow. Exp. 7/8” pipe 10psi = 72.5 gpm, /20psi=102gpm/40psi=145gpm/80psi=177gpm/160psi=289gpm
I use 7/8 pipe because 7/8(.875) x2=1.75x2=3.5 or 3.5 X 2 = 7” pipe of riser. A regular garden hose is about 40psi. Put the hose in swimming pool and can sort of figure how the camera is catching rushing oil. Video looks like maybe 20psi compared to a garden hose. It’s using slow motion so the real thing is not possible. I think most of video spill here is mud, as they cut off the pipe they are simultaneously pumping mud into the will to offset flow by same pipe used previously to top kill.
It’s extremely hard to calculate because the flow has so much gas in the oil. Even if its half the flow it’s ridiculously high and it was best just get a better cap on riser and suck it up instead of opening top to expose more oil then the leak would ever exposed.
Bp just cut it to make us think they are doing something better, and think the public is just stupid. BP obviously is scarred or should I say things happen, and are doing their best, regardless of what we think or say. They are not going to jail, so it’s not like life or death to them. If the well is 3,000 to 15,000psi were is the lost pressure, I guess the blowout prevented is working somewhat. I’m sure if you broke off the blow out provender and above pressure released, talk about oil. Double the psi and aprox. 1.4 times the volume. 10psi is 6.6 million gallons per day. 5,000psi / 1.4 X 6.6million gal. or use a formula using psi and dia. of pipe and pacific gravity of liquid to get exact. Deep wells of pure oil. You can’t imagine!
Their calculation is 20% more oil will flow after the cap. Real life scenario is even with the cap on the pressure will just push 20% more oil into the gulf as before at the will seal. Since they have no more time to level the cut it will leak more. Off course the more oil they can capture will help offset the clean up cost. I’m sure one of the relief wells being drilled can be diverted to the well hole, if the government will not let them finish it or have to wait 6 months or never to complete their well.
Bad cementing practices in drilling is quite common in land gas wells, contaminating whole communities , exploding wells, even houses, and people getting sick from well contamination. switchboard.nrdc.org/.../cementing_problems_cause_onsho_1.html bad cement jobs
www.sec.gov/investor/pubs/oilgasscams.htm gas oil scams
www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId... Fractured wells contami

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