Posted on 01/29/2009 9:57:53 AM PST by Nachum
The message that popped into Laurie Gale's Facebook inbox last month seemed harmless enough -- a friend had seen a video of Ms. Gale and had sent a link so Ms. Gale could view it. The link led to a video site that prompted her to update her video software, which she did.
"Within seconds, everything started shutting itself down," says Ms. Gale, a 37-year-old lamp-works artist from Versailles, Ky. Ms. Gale's new Dell Inspiron laptop had been infected with malicious software, or malware, that has spread through social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace.
"I cried for an hour," Ms. Gale says. It took a trip to the local computer repair shop and several phone calls with Dell customer-service representatives for her to restore the computer to its factory settings. "It was three days of torture."
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
No, you're not alone. I feel the same way.
I work in a business that is about 90% high school and college students. I have to tell you that if you want to get your product in front if the right people, you have to go where they are. Its cheap and effective.
I use it for some personal stuff, but mostly to stay in touch with the students.
Mooooom, I’ve told you, most people use facebook to keep in touch with people not to make new friends..and if you don’t want people to see your account, you don’t add them to your list..and you can delete people..I just did..it felt great! Oh, and it’s not just for kids, one of my friends is an 80 year old WWII Vet! (and my ex neighbor)
So there Mom, get on facebook!
We fight for our privacy and then dumb ass people put it up for the world (and government agencies) to see.
I do computer repair and have a network of three at home, so I’ve seen a lot of this. NEVER open up suspicious windows or click on links unless you are SURE it is legitimate and know where it’s taking you to.
Same goes for e-mail - if you get an unfamiliar e-mail asking you to click on a link or open up an attachment, DON’T DO IT. Discard it and don’t look back.
That certainly makes sense! If I had a business reason to join a site like that, I would definitely do so.
I have friends from all over the US and my family all live out of state. It’s easy on FB to share information, photos, videos and happenings with folk I don’t see but maybe every few years.
Since going on, I’ve re-contacted and found friends from college and high school that I’ve lost touch with. I reconnected with college friends that I had not heard from in decades.
It's okay that you 'don't get it', different strokes for different folks.
:-)
Nope, you're not alone.
I'm far too busy living my own life, to vicariously live through a bunch of "friends" on Facebook. And, I can't imagine who would care how I feel right this particular second, or what's playing on my IPod (if I had an Ipod).
Near as I can tell, Facebook is great for a bunch of gossipy women to mind each other's business...and not much else. (OK, maybe gossipy men too, but I can count the number of guys I know who use it on one hand.)
I love the groups. Two the the groups I'm in are my family has our own group and my church has it's own group. It's great to get out information, share photos, etc.
LOL
I'm over 50 too. I've been a computer software/hardware engineer since the late 70's. I built a lot of the infrastructure that supports stuff like Facebook. I wouldn't touch it with a barge pole. You might as well roll around blindfolded on a lawn covered with dog poop.
A fancy name for a "Arts" major who has graduated college and hasn't yet found a job more lucrative than McDonalds.
If it looks like a 6-year-old did it, it isn't art.
the whole will you be my friend is bewildering to me.
I mean why does one feel the need to ask a stranger on the other side of the country to be your friend.
Then ask them what their favorite color is etc.
You don’t go up to strangers on the street asking them so why do it over the internet to someone you can’t even see and what makes me think that anyone is interested in what movie I like or what music I like
freaks me out the whole concept of it and as someone asked me that I must be over 50, well no I am not I have just turned 40 so it is not a generational thing either.
same as my kids who feel the same.
As my oldest put it when I asked him “ Dad I have friends and I have better things to do in my life than to tell strangers what I like and not like to do”
We fight for our privacy and then dumb ass people put it up for the world (and government agencies) to see.
end quote
so true, we hear all the time about the right to privacy and then some of them going on about it are telling the world about what they did today, what they drank, where they will shop, what music they like and how they like their coffee.
Many of them even put photo’s up of themselves along with their friends , their house and pet dog,
It’s a scammers, /perverts best friend
I appreciate your answer thank you.
Hope you don’t mind but couldn’t you keep in contact though private e-mail instead of letting the world know yours or theirs business?
I’m not having a go at you so please do not think I am but I am generally curious
"Littering and... littering and... littering and smokin' the reefer."
Of course. Facebook is hard to describe. It’s one of those things you really have to see and participate in to really understand.
Like I stated, you can control the degree of privacy. My page is set up that only my ‘friends’ can see it. To be ‘my friend’ and be allowed to see my site, I must ‘approve’ you. I have had strangers request to be ‘friends’, I just deny the request. And, obviously, on my page, I only post information I want to share with my friends.
Like I say, it’s hard to describe. If you have a child or friend on FB, you should have them show you.
Similar to Free Republic’s profile page, you only post as you wish. I see you don’t post anything, I and only post a little… :-) . Whereas, some folk here have a long profile page with tons of photos.
It seems the contention that the lady was too stupid to operate a computer. That could be.
But I say death to the SOB’s who write this malicious crap.
Cut their friggin hands off, Put their fingers in a vice.
The innocent user may be dumb, but the wirters of this garbage arent , they are criminal.
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