Social Networks

Facebook's policy of requiring that users post profiles under their real names was upheld by a German court on Thursday. The decision reversed last year's Independent Center for Privacy Protection ruling that Facebook had to permit the use of pseudonyms in Germany. The ULD -- the privacy regulator f...

Twitter has joined a rapidly growing list of U.S. companies to report a major cybersecurity incident. The social network admitted late last week that it was able to shut down a live attack, but not before hackers may have been able to access personal information on 250,000 users. The social network...

Pinterest, the social scrapbooking site that has quickly captured the Web's attention, this week rolled out a beta test of a redesigned look that features larger pictures and a new way of navigating pages. The biggest change to Pinterest is that images are larger, and there's more information on pin...

Facebook's introduction of Graph Search has been greeted with -- wait for it -- complaints about privacy. Graph Search is a feature Facebook introduced to allow users to enter parameter-based searches to find friends -- and friends of friends -- who share certain interests. A search for "friends who...

Finding anything on Facebook has been a difficult exercise for years, but that's about to change. After a year of intense, secret development, the social network on Tuesday rolled out its new search technology called "Graph Search." The technology is designed to make it easier for Facebook members t...

Facebook announced Thursday that it is testing a system that will let users send prioritized messages to people who aren't among their contacts by paying $1. The initial test, part of an effort to monetize its user base, involves a small group of people. Currently, any messages Facebook members send...

Instagram appears to be backtracking on plans to update its privacy policy and terms of service following an uproar from users. The proposed updates were scheduled to come into effect Jan. 16. Provisions that stirred users' wrath apparently let the company use posted images in advertisements without...

Facebook plans to launch video advertising that will autoplay in users' news feeds some time next year, but it's not yet clear whether they'll be more like silent movies or talkies. Advertisers reportedly will have the chance to buy targeted video ads in the first part of next year. The ads will be ...

Instagram is rolling out an update of its terms of service that gives it more control over users' photos. The changes have unleashed a storm of criticism on various social networks. The new policies are privacy measures that will help Instagram integrate more easily with its parent company, Faceboo...

I am a Left Leaning Authoritarian -- a person characterized as submissive to authority and who advocates significantly more government regulation, especially in economic behaviors. At least, that is how I have been classified by YouStand, a new social network formed around the notion that people l...