Social network and groups

Social networks have long been a target for cybercriminals, but now the bad guys are expanding their horizons.

Malware writers are aiming at such hot social networks as Tumblr and Pinterest to trap a new wave of victims, says a report out yesterday from GFI Software.

"Established sites like Facebook and Twitter have long been a breeding ground for new cyberattacks, but now we are seeing scammers taking an interest in the popularity of newer sites like Pinterest in order to catch victims off guard and trick them into clicking on something they shouldn't," Christopher Boyd, senior … Read more

Today's analysts don't waste any time telling investors what they think about prominent companies.

Sterne Agee analyst Arvind Bhatia initiated coverage on Facebook this morning with a "buy" rating. And although Facebook is expected to go public in the next few weeks between $28 and $35 a share, Bhatia thinks the stock could hit $46 within the next 12 months.

Bhatia bases his bullish opinion of Facebook's shares on a host of factors, including his contention that the company's monthly active users will grow from about 900 million right now to more than 1.… Read more

Yahoo and Facebook are officially on the outs. But things could get worse before they get better, according to a document Facebook filed yesterday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Facebook filed an amended S-1 registration statement with the SEC, noting that Yahoo late last month sent the social network a letter informing it that it holds 16 patents related to open-source technology that could become another pawn in the companies' ongoing legal struggle.

"We received a letter dated April 23, 2012 from Yahoo indicating that they believe 16 patents they claim to hold 'may be relevant' to open … Read more

Is CEO Mark Zuckerberg an obstacle to his own company going public?

Fox Business News correspondent Charles Gasparino is claiming that an internal J.P. Morgan document discussing Facebook's IPO cites Zuckerberg as a "risk factor." No other details were revealed in Gasparino's teasing tweet, but the correspondent promised to reveal more information on "FBN@11am."

But beyond Gasparino's limited tweet, Facebook's own S-1 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission highlights some potential risk factors concerning Zuckerberg.

Obviously, the loss of Zuckerberg as well as other key personnel would hurt … Read more

Rovio has added a new feature to Angry Birds on Facebook that could see the game crop up in more places across the Web.

Dubbed Share & Play, the initiative allows players to embed an Angry Birds level into another person's Facebook Timeline, a blog, or Web page. Those who come across the embedded title will be able to play the game instantly on the respective page without ever needing to install the game. In addition, users won't need to be logged into Facebook to play the title, even though it's shared via the social network.

The … Read more

A lot of Facebook users seem to be in the dark over how to protect their private information.

Out of the 150 million Facebook users in the U.S., almost 13 million don't use or aren't aware of the site's privacy settings, according to a report published in the June issue of Consumer Reports. Further, 28 percent of the people polled by CR shared all, or almost all, of their wall posts with people beyond their friends.

Consumer Reports uncovered other types of risky behavior among Facebook users.

An estimated 4.8 million people have posted details … Read more

Instagram's latest user numbers are sure to make Facebook a proud new papa.

More than 50 million people are now using the popular site and its mobile apps to upload and share photos with fellow users and friends. Instagram didn't officially release the news. The company's Press Center Web page still lists the number of registered users at 30 million.

Instead, the latest figure was obtained by tapping into the site's application programming interface, according to CNET sister site ZDNet. Instagram is apparently adding around 5 million new users per week.

CNET contacted Instagram for comment … Read more

Social network Tumblr is in need of a new president.

John Maloney, who served as president for the past four years, resigned this past weekend, according to the Wall Street Journal.

"People familiar with the situation" told the Journal that Maloney's skills as a general manager became less relevant as the company increased in size to 100 employees and brought other department executives into the fold.

Maloney himself seemed to concede his lack of prowess in running a large company, even telling the board earlier this year that he was thinking of leaving.

"I am a … Read more

Facebook has inked a rather interesting deal with several security vendors.

The social network said today that it has launched the Antivirus Marketplace, a place on its security page where users can download anti-malware software from McAfee, Norton, Sophos, Trend Micro, and Microsoft for free. The software, which includes Norton AntiVirus, Trend Micro Internet Security, and others, can be used for free for six months to a year, depending on what a user downloads.

In addition, Facebook said today that the five companies have agreed to hand over their URL blacklist databases to the social network. Facebook has its own … Read more