social media

Facebook is increasingly becoming a site for older users according to an online measurement company. eMarketer says last year saw a drop in younger users that was nearly three times bigger than it forecast. This time last year the company predicted ... that the number of 12-17 year olds using Facebook would drop by 3.4 percent. That was significant as it was the first time it predicted any form of drop among any age group. Retirees The Main Growth Area A new report from the company says in reality the drop was 9.9 percent. It also says there was an overall fall in users among under-25s, something ... (view more)

Former Facebook and Google employees are campaigning to warn users of the dangers of tech addiction. The 'Center for Humane Technology' will work on lobbying officials and educating children and parents. Though the organization has been running ... since 2014, it's not achieved much publicity so far. That could change with a high-profile relaunch after receiving several forms of funding including cash from a "media watchdog" non-profit, plus the equivalent of $50 million in free advertising space from companies such as Comcast and DirecTV. Google 'Ethicist' In Charge The group is largely made up ... (view more)

Researchers suggest that anonymized browsing data can be used to track users. The flaw can make it easy to reveal exactly what sites individuals have visited. Security experts Svea Eckert and Andreas Dewes told the Def Con security conference that ... they'd been able to identify adult websites a particular judge had visited, as well as a politician's online interest in drugs. The data came from so-called "clickstreams," which are simply a list of the sites an individual has visited and the order in which they visited them. They are commonly used by advertising firms to produce ... (view more)

Political discussion on social media is often driven and manipulated by automated "bots," a university department claims. The word "bots" is a short form for "robot," and refers to online activity carried out using an automated program. The Oxford ... Internet Institute says it studied events in nine countries and found the bots played a role in every case. However, social media groups have questioned such studies saying they are often based on flawed research methods. The study looked at activity on Facebook and Twitter among users in Brazil, Canada, China, Germany ... (view more)

One in five people say social media posts have changed their minds on political issues this year. But many of those changes have been to a negative position. The statistic comes from the Pew Research Center, which regularly surveys Internet users on ... their online activities. It found that 20 percent of the social media users it questioned in its latest study said they have changed their minds about a social or political issue because of something they saw on a social media service, while 17 percent said they have changed their minds about a specific candidate. (Source: washingtonpost.com ) In ... (view more)

A company accused of selling social media data to the police has been blocked from accessing some or all content from three major sites. Facebook, Instagram and Twitter made the move after complaints from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU.) ... According to the ACLU, Geofeedia markets its social media monitoring product to police forces as a way to monitor people who may be involved in protests. In one marketing message, a company representative specifically cited the use of the service during the high-profile unrest that followed the shooting of a man by police officers in Ferguson, ... (view more)

The proportion of people getting their news from social media sites continues to rise. That's prompted debate about who decides what news is most important. In 2013, the Pew Research Center reported that 52 percent of Twitter users get their news ... from Twitter, with the figure being 47 percent for Facebook users. In a follow-up survey this year, the figure is now 63 percent for both sites. In both surveys, the question defined news as "information about events and issues beyond just your friends and family." (Source: journalism.org ) Between the increasing proportions and the ... (view more)

Security experts are warning users to take extra caution when seeking information about the lost Malaysian Airlines flight MH370 online. Reports suggest that cybercriminals are taking advantage of the media buzz surrounding the missing plane in ... order to spread computer malware through malicious web sites, social media, emails, and bogus links. Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 went missing on March 8, 2014. It's still not clear if the plane was hijacked or crashed, let alone where the impact might have taken place. A coalition of 26 countries is currently looking for the aeroplane. (Source: ... (view more)