This Month's FAQ – How Much Time Does The Average American Spend On Facebook?

This Month's FAQ – How Much Time Does The Average American Spend On Facebook?

Question: I'm curious how my use of social media compares with others. For example, how much time does the average American spend on Facebook per month?

Answer: Let's start with the big picture. According to research posted in Morrison Foerster's Socially Aware blog, use of social media has more than doubled in the last several years. While only 24 percent of all online Americans had at least one social-media profile in 2008, 56 percent of them do now. To answer your question, the average Facebook user in America spends almost seven hours per month on the site. That's well ahead of Tumblr and Pinterest, which tie for second place with 1.5 hours per month. By contrast, the average American visitor to Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+ spends less than half an hour on these sites per month.

Scam Alert – Pinterest Hack Feeds Spam To Twitter And Facebook

Pinterest users have reported widespread account takeovers in which spammers post images promoting things such as work-at-home schemes and diet pills. The spammers delete boards, rename them, and change the contents. Since Pinterest users often link their accounts with other social networks like Twitter and Facebook, the spam images are showing up on those networks as well. 
 

The images are typically accompanied by messages such as “Omg this is so cool! Can’t wait for more!” and “Omg this is so exciting! Too excited for next ones!” Accompanying the messages are links back to the spam images on compromised Pintrest accounts.

Pinterest advises customers who have had their account taken over to change their password immediately and warns that "misleading third party apps" and "web browser extensions" often play a part in account takeover incidents. The site also advises users to have a unique password for each social networking site

Scam Alert – Don't Fall For Free Gift Card Scams

The Better Business Bureau is the latest established brand to be used by scammers to promote fake gift cards online. (Others have included Wal-Mart, Target, Starbucks, and Best Buy.) As tempting as these offers appear, especially with the holiday shopping season approaching, don't bother trying to redeem them. They're just tricks to collect consumer data; you won't receive the free gift card promised. 

It works like this: The recipient receives an email, claiming to be from the established brand, stating that he/she has been issued a gift card worth a certain dollar amount. To receive this gift card free of charge, the recipient is told to immediately go to a website and provide information such as age, street address, email address, and phone number. Don't fall for it. You would be giving out personal information and receiving nothing but more spam in return.

In addition, experts warn that used, counterfeit, and fraudulent gift cards are frequently being sold on auction websites. For this reason, don't buy gift cards from auction websites; it's not worth the risk of ending up with a worthless piece of plastic. Only buy gift card directly from the store or from a secure retailer's website.

What Should You Do When You've Been Hacked On Facebook?

Question: What should I do when I've been hacked on Facebook?

Answer: First of all, we're sorry to hear you've been the victim of a "Facecrook." You probably discovered the problem when you were denied access to your Facebook page after the hacker changed your password. But have no fear; you can reclaim your account and get your Facebook life back in order.

You'll need to reset your password and make sure it's secure. If you're not logged in, you can reset your password by clicking the "Forgot your password?" link on the Facebook login page.

If you're already logged in, you can reset your password by going to your Account Settings page located in the Account drop-down menu at the top of every Facebook page.

When choosing a new password:

• Use a combination of at least six numbers, letters, and punctuation marks.
• Don't pick a word from the dictionary.
• Don't pick something you've used as a password on another site.

To reduce your chances of getting hacked again, be careful before signing up for a new Facebook application; they are often the gateway to these kinds of problems. In particular, watch out for applications with "too good to be true" promises as well as those that request you invite half of your friends before you get full functionality.

Google Launches Account Activity Tracker

Google is today introducing a new Account Activity feature for all its users.

By signing up to the service, Google will send you a link to a password-protected report with insights into your use of Google services. But only when you have been signed in to the service, of course.

In a blog post today, Google product manager Andreas Tuerk, says:

"Knowing more about your own account activity also can help you take steps to protect your Google Account. For example, if you notice sign-ins from countries where you haven't been or devices you've never owned, you can change your password immediately and sign up for the extra level of security provided by 2-step verification."

So what possible use could you have for this dashboard? Well, it will actually be useful for monitoring your activity across the board. Remember, all your Google-ness is centralized under one account now, so YouTube, Gmail, Docs, Search, Google+, etc. all fall under one account.

You could analyze your emailing habits, to see if you're sending less or more messages. Or you could look back at what you've been searching for online from month-to-month, and which countries you've been logging in from. The service is live now, and you can opt-in here.

Google says that deletion at the data source, "e.g. in your Web History", won't impact your reports. However, it does stress that your reports can be deleted whenever you want.

Scam Warning – Beware Of Tax-Related Emails

Tax season can be frustrating enough; don't make it worse by falling victim to a tax-related email scam. Each year cybercriminals use a variety of ploys to try to convince nervous taxpayers to reveal personal information. One currently circulating scam uses the name of a legitimate tax preparation software company—Turbo Tax.

The phony email tells recipients they need to upgrade their software in order to be in compliance with new tax laws. It also provides a link which leads to a fake (but legitimate-looking) website. At this point, recipients may be asked to enter personal information to confirm they're the software holder; the cybercriminals then use this information to file tax returns and have refunds sent to them.

To protect yourself:

• Always check on the legitimacy of the tax preparation service you are going to use.
  
  
• If you receive an email from any tax preparation software company, do not open it or click on any link. If you actually need a software upgrade, go directly to the company's secure site.

On a related note, keep in mind that the IRS does NOT send unsolicited email about tax account matters to taxpayers. If you should receive an email claiming to be from the IRS, DO NOT REPLY, CLICK ON ANY LINKS, OR PROVIDE ANY INFORMATION. Visit the IRS website for more about reporting and identifying IRS email scams.

Microsoft unveils Windows 8

BARCELONA, Spain – You already knew from the early "developer preview" of Windows 8 that Microsoft released in September just how radically different this version of the company's ubiquitous operating system is from its predecessors. But now that Microsoft on Wednesday unleashed a more complete preview version of Windows 8 — which consumers can get their hands on — we really are on the threshold of a whole new era of personal computing.

The stakes for Microsoft and the entire computing ecosystem are enormous. This new era is built around tablets as much as traditional laptops and desktops, and multi-touch as much as the keyboard and mouse. At the same time Microsoft marches toward Windows 8, archrival Apple is revving up a new version of Mac OS X called Mountain Lion.

And Apple has a huge lead in tablets with the iPad, a new version of which is expected to be unveiled in San Francisco next week.

To read the entire USA Today article click below.

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/columnist/edwardbaig/story/2012-02-29/windows-8-consumer-preview/53298882/1