Dangers of Facebook

• Identity theft

Two in five people who use the social networking sites revealed personal information to a stranger, according to a snapshot survey. They gave email addresses, dates of birth, addresses and even phone numbers to an unknown user.

• Threats to personal safety such as stalking or threatening either online or in real life

According to Virginia TechPolice Officer Scott Moye, police linked Facebook with over 50 stalking cases on the Virginia Tech campus alone. “Facebook stalking is a dangerous threat,” he said. “All these college students, particularly females, talk about hawking over their drinks, sticking in pairs at parties, and not walking alone at night. But they give away all kinds of information without utilizing an ounce of the precaution that they use in other safety situations.”

• Social risks through participating in minority groups or stigmatized groups
  

There are several Facebook groups that are rapidly gaining popularity as more users are aware of their existence and use them as a medium to express their interests. uch groups actually possess the capability to bring about a new world of e-extremism and terrorism. As reported on The Economist print edition on 24^thJuly 2008, on Facebook , the public can actually join groups like "Belgium Doesn't Exist" or "I Hate Pakistan". These extremely niche networks unite the different types of extremists whose activities are monitored and restricted by many governments.

• Addiction

Users can fall into the habit of continuously checking their account for updates, sometimes up to several times a day. Other social activities drop in terms of importance and communicational skills go out the window.