Facebook adds malware link scanning and racism block

[European blood]

Facebook has confirmed that it will now scan all third-party URLs posted on the social network, partnering with Websense to check for malware and viruses in real-time whenever a link is clicked. ”If the destination site is considered unsafe,” Websense explains, “the user is presented with a warning page that offers the choice to continue at their own risk, return to the previous screen, or get more information on why it was flagged as suspicious.”

The system relies on Websense’s ThreatSeeker Cloud system, which rather than use a blacklist of sites deemed unsafe, actually promises to scan the page to figure out whether or not it can be trusted. That, the company reckons, is a more thorough way of doing it, and allows them to check not only for viruses and malware but other content deemed inappropriate, such as racism.

In that way, it’s a marked difference from Google’s blocking system, which warns about potentially dangerous pages using a list of pre-approved sites. Facebook has already implemented a crowd-sourced link checking system, called Web of Trust, which will continue to operate in addition to Websense’s offering.

http://www.slashgear.com/facebook-adds-malware-link-scanning-and-racism-block-04185083/

[research_centre]

Facebook has confirmed that it will now scan all third-party URLs posted on the social network, partnering with Websense to check for malware and viruses in real-time whenever a link is clicked. ”If the destination site is considered unsafe,” Websense explains, “the user is presented with a warning page that offers the choice to continue at their own risk, return to the previous screen, or get more information on why it was flagged as suspicious.”

The system relies on Websense’s ThreatSeeker Cloud system, which rather than use a blacklist of sites deemed unsafe, actually promises to scan the page to figure out whether or not it can be trusted. That, the company reckons, is a more thorough way of doing it, and allows them to check not only for viruses and malware but other content deemed inappropriate, such as racism.

In that way, it’s a marked difference from Google’s blocking system, which warns about potentially dangerous pages using a list of pre-approved sites. Facebook has already implemented a crowd-sourced link checking system, called Web of Trust, which will continue to operate in addition to Websense’s offering.

http://www.slashgear.com/facebook-adds-malware-link-scanning-and-racism-block-04185083/

Of course, who really gives a shite? Only a fool wastes their time on that site.

[European blood]

FACEBOOK is being sued by a group of users over claims it tracks their online activity after they log off.

The claims were exposed by an Australian technology blogger, Nik Cubrilovic, who conducted tests that revealed that when users log out, the site does not delete tracking ''cookies'' but modifies them, keeping information that can identify users as they surf the internet.

The company has told users cookie files installed on their computers to track interactions with Facebook applications and websites are removed when they log off, according to a complaint in the US federal court in San Jose, California. Facebook admitted last week that the cookies track internet activity after users log off, according to the suit.
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''This admission came only after an Australian technology blogger exposed Facebook's practice of monitoring members who have logged out, although he brought the problems to the defendant's attention a year ago,'' the complaint states.

On Friday, 10 public interest groups asked the US Federal Trade Commission to investigate Facebook's tracking of internet users after they log off. They urged the commission to examine whether Facebook's new ticker and timeline features increased privacy risks for users by combining biographical information in an easily accessible format.

The lawsuit - filed by Perrin Aikens Davis, of Illinois - seeks class status on behalf of other Facebook users in the US. Davis seeks unspecified damages and a court order blocking the tracking based on violations of federal laws, including restrictions on wiretapping, as well as computer fraud and abuse statutes.

''We believe this complaint is without merit and we will fight it vigorously,'' Andrew Noyes, a Facebook spokesman, said in a statement.

http://www.smh.com.au/technology/technology-news/facebook-sued-over-claims-it-tracks-users-activity-20111001-1l2qv.html#ixzz1Zl5NogNK