Sergey Brin spotted on New York subway wearing Google Glasses | French Twitter Lawsuit Pits Free Speech Against Hate Speech | Justin Bieber dethrones Lady Gaga on Twitter | Twitter flaw gave third-party apps unauthorized access to private messages | Social Media photo of students with tape on their mouths may lead to dismissal for teacher
In a sign of the future, Google Glasses were tested on the NY underground this week. Introducing the concept of augmented reality for the mass consumer, the glasses could lead to everyone being able to have a view of the world similar to Arnold Schwarzenegger’s cyborg in the Terminator movies where data was relayed in every direction he looked. Google are likely to provide information about businesses, shopping, transport, leisure facilities, maps and directions rather than how best to maim the individual standing next to you however.
We could not let the momentous news that Lady Gaga is no – longer Queen of twitter pass without being marked in some way, having been surpassed in the number of her followers by Justin Bieber. The interesting figures here are the number of users, with Bieber on 33.3 Million and Gaga on 33.2 Million. The top 4 twitter users are all US music figures, while the leading non musician is President Obama on 26.1 million. However Obama can claim the most retweeted image in twitter history with the election night image of him embracing his wife Michelle once the election outcome had been called in his favour. The only other non – entertainer in the top 10 is YouTube’s official twitter account with 22.2 Million followers.
In France, Twitter has moved closer to being ordered by a Judge to reveal the identities of users that have posted offensive comments on the micro blogging site that breach European Laws that ban hate speech. The privately initiated lawsuit has the powerful backing of the French Government. Twitter has removed the offensive posts, but the user information is stored on twitter’s Californian servers, and Twitter maintains the information will not be supplied unless and US Judge compels Twitter to do so, relying on any US Court to assert freedom of Speech over any European Laws introduced to curb hate speech directed against minorities in the immediate aftermath of WWII.
Meanwhile a flaw has been identified in Twitter’s Direct Messaging system. If you use a Twitter App to allow you to log in to other 3rd party web or mobile applications, there is a very real possibility that your Twitter Direct Message inbox can be viewed by the 3rd Party. Probably a good reason to go through your DM inbox and delete most of the spam that sits in there then…
Finally, a US Teacher faces dismissal for posting a photo on Facebook An apparently innocent joke initiated by the Students themselves, the teacher proceeded to upload the photo, which was seen by colleagues and parents who notified the school. The teacher is now suspended and faces losing her job. The incident illustrates how people use Social Media almost without hesitation to post pictures and comments as events occur, often not considering the impact of what is being posted or how it could be interpreted. Another example of the need to have a comprehensive Social Media policy that is understood by all employees.
Google search market share hits five-year low – News – Trusted Reviews
BBC News – Data slowdown looms for smart phone users
BBC News – ‘Privacy visor blocks facial recognition software’
US data privacy advocates head to Brussels in show of support (Wired UK)
French Twitter Lawsuit Pits Free Speech Against Hate Speech : NPR
Justin Bieber dethrones Lady Gaga on Twitter – CNN.com
Researcher: Twitter flaw gave third-party apps unauthorized access to private messages | PCWorld
Facebook Pages Are a Bad Investment for Small Businesses – Forbes
