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EU Criticizes Social Networks for Privacy Flaws By Frederick Lane December 4, 2007 12:52PM The European Network and Information Service Agency (ENISA) report details several well-known threats to privacy on social networks and describes some chilling new possibilities. For instance, the photos that users post, the ENISA report warned, can be used as a facial-recognition tool to identify anonymous profiles on other sites.   Related Topics Privacy Social Networks EU MySpace Facebook Latest News Endeavour Inspected for Damage Autism Risk for Kids of Older Mothers Go Online and You Can Save the Planet In Haiti, Relief Gaps Are Spreading U.S. To Form Climate-Change Agency According to the European Network and Information Service Agency (ENISA), the popularity of social-networking sites often leads to disclosures that are "not appropriate to a public forum." In October, ENISA issued a detailed report describing the privacy threats faced by users of social networks and offered several recommendations to minimize the associated risks. "It's a thoughtful analysis and chilling critique," Jeff Chester, executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy, said in an e-mail. "It's time for both advocates and governments in the EU and U.S. to work together to develop meaningful rules to govern the data collection on these networks." Paul Stephens, the director of public policy at the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, agreed that social networks pose a significant privacy problem. "Obviously, the social networking sites are set up for them to make money," Stephens said by phone. "Their primary interest is going to be making money and not protecting the privacy of individuals who provide information to the sites." Old Worries, New Threats The ENISA report details several well-known privacy threats and describes some chilling new possibilities. Among the more familiar risks are the compilation of digital dossiers by third parties who download profiles from social networks; the compilation of usage data by the social networking sites; possible identity theft through the use of publicly disclosed information; cyberstalking and bullying; and corporate espionage. But the report also raises the possibility of some startlingly new dangers. For instance, ENISA warned, the photographs that users post of themselves on social networks can be used as a facial-recognition tool to identify an anonymous profile on another site (for instance, a dating site). Another emerging technology is Content-Based Image Retrieval (CBIR), in which the features of a photo can be used as the basis for other image searches or can even be used to identify where the photo was taken. You Can Check In, But... One of the more disconcerting findings of the ENISA report is that it is very difficult for users to delete information related to their accounts if they decide to leave a social networking site. It is particularly difficult, ENISA said, for users to delete information that is somehow related to their account but on other people's profiles -- comments, for instance, or tagged photos. Among its 19 recommendations, ENISA suggested that social-networking sites offer convenient tools for completely deleting account data, and giving users more control over information that refers to them. For Stephens, the issue is much more basic. "I think the key issue from a privacy standpoint," he said, "is adequate disclosure, or more properly, the lack of adequate disclosure by social-networking sites. A lot of people go onto these sites and disclose information, and they are not informed about the uses to which that information is put."   Tell Us What You Think Your Comment: Also Visit: iPad Info Center Billions of Bytes Mobile Device Now Apple Info Center TopTechWire.com Advertisement  Digital Life 1.   Macworld Focuses on Mobile Apps 2.   Nexus One 'Support' Passes the Buck 3.   New Zealand Virgin Auctions Herself 4.   Google May Make Gmail More Social 5.   Analysts Expect iPad Price To Drop Sony Ericsson Unveils Aspen Handset Windows Mobile unit comes with Skype. Average Rating: Books on Social-Media Marketing Cost-effective ways to engage clients. Average Rating: Torrent Traps Used To Harvest Logins Web sites sold with backdoor access. Average Rating:

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