Social Network Viruses Still On The Rise

Social Networking web sites like facebook and myspace are used by more Internet users than any other medium in the world today. In fact, 4 out of 5 of us internet users over the age of 35 are logging onto a social networking website at least once a month according to the latest CNET statistics. Facebook is the new leader this month registering over 1 billion users (yup 10 digits) so its no wonder that they continue to be the target of choice by internet evil-doers.

The Koobface virus is nothing new but it continues to be the largest threat to social network web site developers and their users. I recently had an experience where this Koobface virus was sent to me on facebook. Lucky for me, ethical hackers are always a step ahead of evil hackers so I recognized the game right away.

Still, I thought it would be a good chance to run the virus in a virtual setting and show my readers what to look out for whille having fun on FB. As a search engine optimization professional, social networking web sites are an essential part of ranking well on google. That said, I frequent many of these sites. While on facebook, I received an email message from one of my facebook friends that was clearly out of character for that individual. That was my first tip that something wasn't right.

The Koobface virus, once it has infected your PC, gains access to your facebook friends and emails each of your friends a message with a link leading them to a web page to innocently download the same virus. It also hijacks your web browser, email and creates a general hostile environment across your network. Viruses are self-replicating. Koobface is spread by a network or by transmission to a removable medium such as a removable disk, writable CD, or USB drive. It may also spread by infecting files on a network file system or a file system that is shared by another computer. This is why the Internet and social media web sites are such a hot bed for this type of malware.

So enough chatter, here is what you're looking for...
You receive a facebook email message from one of your friends with a comment about "how great you look in this video" with a link to youtube .

You click on the link and then, whoops! The video has been moved? You are now being redirected to a hackers server.


Next you arrive at a web site that looks just like you tube but it isn't. You are then prompted to download and install the latest version of Flash before you can view the video.

The danger is that most people have been trained by now to only accept links in an email from people you know... well I know this person. So hopefully now you're a little smarter and a little wiser and I can go take care of my cold feeling like I've helped someone today :)

Until next time, happy surfing!

Bill @ gnidesign

The Future of Social Networking

It's been 10 years of developing the web since the first implementations of Web 2.0 began back in 1999. I can't even begin to count the number of web sites I've rolled out in that time. The number of technologies that I have been introduced to and added to my arsenal are enough to make my brain go numb. Interactive information sharing has indeed come a long way and its evolution still amazes me. We've seen dot-com's grow to mammoth proportions and then watched as they fizzle out. Still others thrive for reasons that we just do not have facts or numbers on. In early 2000 it seemed that the peer to peer giant Napster would take over the world and yet today they are lost in the shadows of iTunes and the Zune Marketplace. Some interactive web sites like SpotLife.com were on top for a fleeting moment and gone as quick as they came. Even MySpace has been steadily losing its edge for several years now.

So what's next for the web? I ask myself this question almost daily as it is after all how I keep the family fed and housed. Without a doubt, social networking is going to break through to a new plateau. Websites like Facebook and Twitter have moved beyond cult phenomenom now and have become the daily web diet of the average computer user. These site are not going away anytime soon as long as they keep us engaged with games like Mafia Wars and Farmville. Personally, I never play the games on facebook and most of my requests go unanswered not because I don't want to be bothered, but I just WISH that I had that much time in my life to play because it looks like fun. The little bit of gaming time I do have is spent on Xbox Live where you can find me as Corinthian06.

That said, I think we will see a new trend in these types of sites because the site owners are realizing that we cannot be bought with banner ads and PPC advertizing. We are abhored by pop-up advertizing and that includes innocent surveys. You might say that some types of online marketing are beginning to sour, perhaps losing its effectiveness. So where do large corporations go next to generate profits? Well... they're going to come to the end users. People just like you and me and leverage our network of friends.

You may recall all of the attention Barnes & Noble, Inc. received when they introduced their associate plan? The way it worked was you put some links to some of their products on your personal website and a user purchased that book by following your link you received a few pennies. That didn't work very well for you and me because the business model was terrible and the associate plan was eventually phased out. Now imagine this idea on steroids, with enough of a profit margin for social network junkies like you and me that it could be lucrative?

Enter blastoffnetwork.com. This is a genius blend of social networks aggregation and multi-tier marketing and frankly... I like it! This is good for people, good for the economy and what the heck, we're hanging out on facebook and tweeting on twitter anyway, so why not get paid for it right?

By the way, you can find me on right here on Facebook, or follow me here on Twitter, and if you are reading this I would be more than happy to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn!

If you are looking for additional information on BlastOff, sorry I can't help you with that but you can contact denisek@nc.rr.com with any sign-up type questions.

Until next time... Happy Surfing!

Bill @ gnidesign