CYNTHIA: Growing apprehension over social media freedom

Following the recent gruesome murder of Cynthia Osokogu by people she met on a social media platform, many Nigerians have canvassed the need to regulate the unlimited freedom people have to social networking media. 

THE emergence of social media like Facebook, Twitter, Blackberry Messenger and YouTube have changed the face of media practice by making information sharing easier, faster and quicker. But this is not without its demerits. Social media has become a threat to the ethics of media practice and good governance because of its accessibility and absolute freedom. Every freedom carries a responsibility.

 Even in advanced democracies where we all believe good governance is practised, there is no absolute freedom. I, therefore, believe that there must be a measure to check the negative tendencies of the social media in our country.’’ Cynthia…lured through Facebook and murdered and murdered and Facebook founder: Mark Zukerberg It was on this note that the Senate President, Senator David Mark kicked off a two-day retreat for Senate Press Corps in Umuahia, Abia State two months ago. 

 The Senate President said the check became necessary because people now use social media to demean their leaders. He added that there was no opportunity for retraction of information in such media. The position of the Senate President, however, attracted criticisms from various quarters, especially from those, who noted that social media platforms are a mechanism for ordinary citizens to assess the performance of their leaders. On the heels of the condemnations, were several posts on Facebook, which called for an Occupy David Mark movement, as a way of checkmating the suggestion. For instance, a particular post on Saharareporters read thus: “ATTENTION: Occupy David Mark.

 The Senate President must be stopped from his moves to restrict the use of social media in Nigeria, as it has been done in militarised countries of the world. He has been quoted as saying the social media is being used to insult leaders. 

We are not in North Korea, this is a democracy. Occupy his telephone line and help save our only freedom of expression”. Another social media platform, Nairaland also had a post which read: “We now have citizen journalists. To me that’s a big improvement for the masses. The revolution in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya would have been impossible to organise without the social media. If someone commits what could pass for a crime, by all means get the person and sue him. They do it all the time in US and UK.

 Nothing is wrong with that. There is a difference between slander and personal opinion. I can say Mr President is silly based on my personal observation of his conduct but I should be ready to prove it if I say that he embezzled 10 billion naira. Now, let me ask, why are they so concerned. 

 “Are we doing them any real damage? Are they not still stealing our monies despite our Nairaland and other nonsense web where we helplessly vent our anger? Do your torturers have the right to tell you not to scream and cry?’’ Barely two months after the call by the Senate President, the nation was faced with the bizarre murder of Cynthia Osokogu, made possible by a social media platform, Facebook.

 For those, who had attacked and even supported the Senate President’s position, the Cynthia saga was a reminder of earlier calls, by Mark and others, for a law to regulate the social media. The late Cynthia, it would be recalled, was the last and only daughter of Major General Frank Osokogu and his wife Joy. 

A business woman and student, the 24- year-old was declared missing on July 22, a few weeks to her 25th birthday. She came into Lagos to purchase goods for her boutique and also keep a date with a few Facebook friends who had allegedly paid her air fares. She was allegedly lured to a hotel in FESTAC where she was killed. 

 Her alleged killers were said to be her Facebook friends who were part of a syndicate which lures young women to Lagos, robs them of their possessions and murders them. Cynthia was their sixth victim. She was allegedly drugged, robbed and strangled. All forms of identification were taken off her at the time of her death. She was even reported to be a call-girl who died in the ‘line of duty’. 

 Police the social media platforms With the trial of Cynthia’s alleged killers still on-going, Vanguard Features investigations reveal a growing concern over the use of social media networks and the need to regulate the use of social media in the country. Only recently, the Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku, lamented the mischievous use of the social media by some Nigerians.

 He spoke at the 20th anniversary of the National Broadcasting Commission, NBC in Abuja, He decried the unwholesome information and pictures of teenagers posted on Facebook, which are sometimes used to tarnish the image of some innocent Nigerians. Also corroborating Maku’s call for a regulatory framework, Chief Emeke Ndige, told VF that it is regrettable that the merits of social media are being consumed by its disadvantages.

 He called on the regulatory bodies to check the trend, adding that concerned agencies should come up with laws regulating the freedom in social media usage. “It is a sad development, and we should all rise to do everything within the ambit of the law to checkmate this trend. It was unfortunate that the young lady ended in such manner. But it has come with a purpose because the law would now become so responsive to the need to police the social media platforms. 

They have to be policed in order to create order in its usage, because there is so much freedom there, ‘’ he stated. Continuing, Ndige said: ‘’I am not against any form of liberty; as a lawyer we support people’s inalienable rights, but that right should not infringe on other people’s life. So NCC and other concerned agencies should come in.

 But that is not all, the law enforcement agencies and the judiciary should ensure that any social media suspect is prosecuted to a logical conclusion to serve as a deterrent to others. In other countries, cyber criminals are prosecuted by the law’’. Also speaking on the need for cyber security in the country, the Managing Partner of Okoro&Okoror Chambers, Chief Eidonogie Isiwele, told VF, that there was nothing wrong with the unlimited freedom in social media. 

He explained that what is needed is to create a secured future for the youths. ‘’I am not holding brief for anyone, but you will agree that most cyber related crimes in Nigeria are driven by poverty and state of hopelessness. A lot of people have no future in this country because of the collapse of the social system, hence surviving in Nigeria, to them, becomes survival of the fittest. 

The situation made the people to embrace internet crimes, but that notwithstanding, the law should be preventive on social media crime,” he said As far as Isiwele is concerned: ‘’Relevant laws should be put in place, but the people’s right to social media should not be stopped like what obtains in few countries where their laws are draconian as regards to social media.

 “I know that the Federal Government made attempts to curb the excesses of social media and its growing influence early this year; it is in order because it would reduce the soaring rate of cyber crimes in the country,’’ he posited According to him: ‘’Cyber criminals are already exploiting vulnerabilities and loopholes in national and regional legislation, there is evidence that they are shifting their diverse operations to countries where appropriate and enforcement laws are not yet in place’’.

 A 2008 report by the President of Global Network for Cyber Solutions, Dr. Chris Uwaje, stressed the need for government to seek the advice of experts in the field of information technology. ‘’If Nigeria knows IP and cyber security issues, they should domicile them at the footstep of the professionals in the CPN, the NCS and ATCON. 

These are people who have been trained in the area of informatics and information technology development; they should be the experts advising government,’’ the report said Continuing, Uwagie declared : ‘’ How can we have a nation that does not have an IT adviser to the President? And you want to safeguard your country from digital attack. 

There must be a Special Assistant to the Office of Mr. President, who would be a senior adviser on information technology. These are the things that need to be put in place in the Federal Republic of Nigeria, which is very strategically imperative that we need to do as fast as we can’’.

 According to him: ‘’ There is no reason why we should not have an Institute of Cybercrime Monitoring; there is no reason why we cannot have Cyber Engineering in our institutions; there is no reason why we should not inculcate the cybersecurity curriculum from primary school upwards. 

Just the same way we used to have the civic lessons of old, cybersecurity and cybercrime can be introduced at the primary and secondary schools levels’’. Vanguard Features recalls a recent report on Aljazzeera titled: “Dutch boy sentenced in Facebook murder case”. 

 According to the report, the 15-year-old Dutch boy was sentenced to a year in juvenile detention after he confessed to killing a schoolgirl over a row that appears to have begun on Facebook, the social-networking site. Jinhua K was 14 when he fatally stabbed Joyce “Winsie” Hau at her home. Jinhua was further convicted by the court for attempting to kill his victim’s father. ‘’The case, known in the Netherlands as the Facebook murder, caused widespread debate about the role of social media in violent crimes. 

The court said the boy did not know the victim and had murdered her “at the request or instructions of others”. Dutch media reported that the 15-year-old victim had argued for weeks with two friends on the social-networking site before they allegedly asked the defendant, who was 14 at the time, to kill her. He was offered a 1,000-euro payment, the media reported.

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Facebook has more than 83 million 'fake' users

In company filings published this week, it said 8.7% of its 955 million active users might not be real. Duplicate profiles made up 4.8% of the users, user-misclassified accounts amounted to 2.4%, and 1.5% of users were described as "undesirable". 

 The estimate came at a time of growing concern about the value of marketing on the platform. In total, the company said it estimated there were 83.09 million fake users, which it classified in three groups. 

 The largest group of "fakes" were duplicates, which the company defined as "an account that a user maintains in addition to his or her principal account." Others were described as "user-misclassified" where, Facebook explained "users have created personal profiles for a business, organisation, or non-human entity such as a pet".

 Finally, "undesirable" accounts were profiles deemed to be in breach of Facebook's terms of service. Typically, this means profiles which have been used for sending out spam messages or other content.

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Quit Facebook Or Be Expelled, Students Told

 

 Students at a primary school have been told by teachers to quit social networking site Facebook or be expelled. In Harlaxton State School's newsletter, the principal said no student is to have a Facebook account as it violates the school's policy, the Brisbane Times reported.

 Principal Leonie Hultgren argued that as Facebook legally requires users to be at least 13 years old, pupils at the Queensland school were breaking the law if they registered with the site as they would be providing false information to do so. The school introduced the policy after a spate of cyberbullying.

 "A student who contravenes the law or rule in a digital scenario may need to meet the Principal to discuss this issue and their continued enrolment at Harlaxton," she added. "It may seem insignificant to lie about your age to gain access to a social media site but where does it stop? Will they then think it is okay to lie about their age to gain a licence?"  

The same rules apply to Facebook in the UK but research conducted in 2011 revealed 43% of nine to 12 year-olds are registered to use the site. Responding to the research, a spokesperson for Facebook said: "Recent reports have highlighted just how difficult it is to implement age restrictions on the Internet and that there is no single solution to ensuring younger children don't circumvent a system or lie about their age.

 "Just as parents are always teaching and reminding kids how to cross the road safely, talking about internet safety should be just as important a lesson to learn." Should Facebook be banned in schools? Let us know.

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The Maturation of the Billionaire Boy-Man

If all goes as planned, Facebook will finally pull the trigger later this month on its long-salivated-over IPO. The deal could value the company in the neighborhood of $100 billion, making founder and CEO Mark Elliot Zuckerberg’s own unusually large stake worth $25 billion. It is a huge sum, even in context. Zuckerberg’s impending fortune is more money than Wal-Mart’s 10,000-plus stores made last year.

 It’s more than Wall Street paid in bonuses to New Yorkers last year. And it has been amassed in only eight years by a 27-year-old who not long ago passed out business cards reading “I’m CEO, bitch.” The Zuckerberg most people know is the one depicted by The Social Network: nerdy, insecure, and shady—in no way a mature adult who’s earned such massive wealth. His awkward public appearances over the years have not improved that impression.

 Zuckerberg may have written the original code for Facebook, the common view of him goes, but the company’s success since then—the service is now used by nearly one-eighth of the world’s population—has come more despite him than because of him. 

He was just in the right place at the right time. But this view sells Zuckerberg massively short. Getting a company to grow as fast as Facebook has is extraordinarily difficult, even when users do a lot of the work. It’s even more challenging when you go in having never raised so much as a dollar from investors or managed a single employee, and you’re fighting to stay ahead of some of the richest, most aggressive, and most talented companies in the world. 

 “Mark has done two things in his twenties,” a colleague of Zuckerberg says. “He has built a global company, and he has grown up.” The second one made the first possible. When early mistakes risked an employee mutiny, Zuckerberg knuckled down and learned how to lead. He made himself the pupil of some of the best bosses in business but had the maturity never to let outsiders sway his overall vision. He got adept at hiring the right people, and, more important, firing senior employees whom the company had outgrown. 

Appalled at the way he was portrayed in The Social Network, Zuckerberg initially wanted nothing to do with the movie—then, deciding not to let it define him, he rented out theaters in a Mountain View cineplex and bused the entire company over to see it. “Was he lucky?” another early colleague of Zuckerberg says. “Of course. We’re all ridiculously lucky. But you also make your own luck. The world has overlooked how great Mark is as a CEO.” He was, yes, in the right place at the right time—but he also has leadership qualities that really set him apart.

 As Facebook embarks on its IPO “road show,” the question of just how good Zuckerberg is will trail it: His control of the company is such that a bet on the company’s stock is a bet on him. Investors will be wagering on an entrepreneur who’s committed himself to getting better and better as a leader. But they’ll also be betting on one whose commitment to his long-term vision is so deep that he just might drive Wall Street crazy.

 When Zuckerberg created “Thefacebook,” there were already similar services on other college campuses. Columbia had one. Stanford had one. Yale had one. At Harvard, Zuckerberg’s schoolmates the Winklevoss brothers had, famously, been trying to get one off the ground for months. Meanwhile, out in the real world, Friendster had amassed more than 2 million users. There was MySpace. There was AOL, which had established the “friend” concept almost a decade earlier with its instant-messaging system’s Buddy Lists.

 Today, all those other social networks are effectively toast, while Facebook is closing in on 1 billion ­users. Why? Because Facebook has executed better. And that starts with Zuckerberg’s formidable instincts. All great consumer-technology products share two attributes, which is that they are cool and easy to use. From the beginning, Zuckerberg knew how to make products that were cool and easy to use. He didn’t “overbuild” Facebook, packing it so full of features that people couldn’t figure out how to use it.

 He made “uptime” a huge early priority, only rolling out Facebook to new schools when he was certain that the company’s servers and software could handle the traffic load. These steps sound like no-brainers, but they trip up a lot of technology start-ups. Stanford’s predecessor to Facebook, for example, was so complicated that it never really caught on. Friendster grew so fast that its infrastructure got swamped: People wanted to log on, but they couldn’t. A year later, when Friendster finally fixed the problem, its U.S. users were gone.

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7 Most Common Facebook Crimes

There’s no doubt that Facebook has completely revolutionized the way people interact. But there’s a dark side to the world’s love affair with social media. Criminals are finding new ways to utilize Facebook to commit new and disturbing crimes that authorities don’t necessarily know how to police. 

That’s why if you want to continue to enjoy social media, you should be aware of the common crimes committed on Facebook so that you can avoid becoming a victim. Here are the seven most common Facebook crimes.

Scams

Criminals have been utilizing the scam for centuries. In the Facebook world, scams are particularly effective at drawing people in by simply enticing an individual to click on a link that would interest almost anyone, such as an innocent-looking notification that you’ve won a free prize like a gift card.

 Then, in order to claim the prize, scammers require you to submit some information, such as a credit card number or Social Security number. This description may make it seem like scams are easy to spot, but even the most savvy social media user has to be on the lookout for illegitimate requests for information.

Cyberbullying

Cyberbullying is a common occurrence among teenagers on Facebook and one that can result in serious criminal charges if it goes far enough. Cyberbullying on Facebook has contributed to the deaths of several teens who either committed suicide or were killed by a peer. Cyberbullying that involves hacking or password and identity theft may be punishable under state and federal law.

 When adults engage in this kind of online behavior it is called cyber-harassment or cyberstalking.

Stalking

The term “stalking” is thrown around a lot on Facebook, and it is often meant as a joke for regularly looking at someone’s profile. However, the actual act of cyberstalking is a common crime on the social networking site and can result in a serious offense. Cyberstalking typically involves harassing a person with messages, written threats, and other persistent online behavior that endangers a person’s safety. 

Although cyberstalking may seem like nothing more than annoying behavior, it is a legitimate cause for concern in many cases and can even lead to in-person stalking or endangerment if not treated seriously.

Robbery

It doesn’t take much for a thief to find out where you live, go to school, work, or hang out if you make that information readily available on Facebook. If you use Facebook’s check-in or Google Maps feature, then you could be in a heap of trouble if a robber is paying attention. This person isn’t always a complete stranger either; they may be an old acquaintance or someone else you’d never expect to come rob you.

Identity theft

With the large amount of personal information swarming around Facebook these days, it has become fairly easy for criminals to steal users’ identities. Hackers often break into users’ e-mails and make fake Facebook accounts. From there they can access personal and bank information and cause havoc to your sense of security. Protect yourself from identity theft on Facebook by keeping your profile very secure and free of personal information that a criminal would love to have.

Defamation

An individual commits the crime of defamation when they communicate a false statement to a third party that paints another individual or entity in a negative light. Facebook makes communicating defamatory statements frighteningly easy, and the exposure Facebook provides makes it more likely that businesses or individuals will be harmed by the defamatory statement, and thus more likely to pursue legal remedies. Be careful what you say on Facebook; you may be committing a crime without even knowing it.

Harassment

Harassment happens all the time on Facebook. From s*xual harassment to assault threats, there has been a significant increase in the number of harassment cases happening on Facebook. It’s not uncommon for s*x offenders and s*xual predators to prey on unsuspecting victims on Facebook and even pose as a teen or college student. Harassing messages, inappropriate comments, and other persistent behaviors should be reported to Facebook and your local police station.

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Jealous husband kills wife’s Facebook friend

A jealous Taiwanese husband led an assault on a Facebook user who had flirted with his wife online, beating him to death with baseball clubs, police said Monday. 

Chou You-huang, a 34-year-old resident of south Taiwan’s Pingtung county, told police that he had requested a meeting with the 40-year-old victim, Chuang Shih-chang, after he found out about the online relationship. 

 When Chuang turned up at the agreed spot outside a restaurant early Saturday morning, Chou and two of his friends attacked him with baseball bats, according to police. 

 The three men beat him ferociously and then left him there, believing he had not suffered life-threatening injuries, according to police statements. Chuang was discovered dead shortly afterwards. Police subsequently arrested the three allegedly involved in the assault.

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Facebook can lead to 'addiction', especially among the poorly educated

Facebook is a habit-forming activity - but users who spend a lot of time on the site say they feel less happy with their lives. University of Gothenburg researchers say that many users log in as soon as they turn their PCs on - and that the behaviour can develop into an 'addiction'. 

People in low income groups and the poorly educated are particularly at risk. Up to 85% of users say that they use Facebook daily - and half say they start up Facebook as soon as they open their web users. 

 Half fear that they are not 'on top of things' if they are not logged into the site, and 25% say they fill 'ill at ease' if they can't log in regularly. The Swedish survey, which polled 1,000 people aged 18-73 showed the network had its dark side. 

 'Facebooking may become an unconscious habit. A majority of the respondents log in every time they start their web browser. This may even develop into an addiction,' says Leif Denti, doctoral student of Psychology at the University of Gothenburg. 

People with low income and low-educated individuals spend more time on Facebook. Women are generally more active than men on Facebook.

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Even while I'm dying, I still want Facebook': Taiwanese woman, 31, kills herself live online on Facebook

Friends of a Taiwanese woman pleaded with her not to kill herself as she chatted to them live on Facebook, giving them a running commentary of her own suicide.

But not one of them alerted the authorities as Claire Lin, 31, told them she was inhaling poisonous fumes.

Police in Taipei said her final Facebook entries show her chatting with nine friends, describing her gradual asphyxiation.

One picture posted from her mobile phone shows a charcoal barbecue burning next to two stuffed animals. Another shows the room filled with fumes.

Police officer Hsieh Ku-ming said today that Miss Lin took her own life on her birthday, March 18. Family members reported the suicide soon after her death but were unaware of the online conversations that accompanied it.

One friend, identified as Chung Hsin, told Miss Lin: 'Be calm, open the window, put out the charcoal fire, please, I beg you.'

She replied: 'The fumes are suffocating. They fill my eyes with tears. Don't write me anymore.'

Her last words, written in Chinese, were: 'Too late. My room is filled with fumes. I just posted another picture. Even while I'm dying, I still want FB [Facebook]. Must be FB poison. Haha.'

Miss Lin's chilling messages indicated she was unhappy because her boyfriend was ignoring her, and had failed to return home to be with her on her birthday. He found her body the following morning and alerted her family.

Mr Hsieh said he regretted that none of Miss Lin's friends called the police for help during the 67-minute episode.

But he added: 'It could be true that it would be hard to track down a Facebook friend without her address or phone contact.'

Chai Ben-rei, a sociologist at Taiwan's Feng Chia University, said the incident reflected social isolation in the internet age.

'People may have doubts about what they see on the internet because of its virtual nature, and fail to take action on it,' he said.

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Facebook Friends: Are You A Narcissist?

Researchers have established a direct link between the number of friends you have on Facebook and the degree to which you are a "socially disruptive" narcissist.

People who scored highly on the Narcissistic Personality Inventory questionnaire had more friends on Facebook, tagged themselves more often and updated their newsfeeds more regularly.

The research comes amid increasing evidence that young people are becoming increasingly narcissistic and obsessed with self image and shallow friendships.

The latest study, published in the journal Personality and Individual Differences, also found that narcissists responded more aggressively to derogatory comments made about them on the social networking site's public walls and changed their profile pictures more often.

A number of previous studies have linked narcissism with Facebook use, but this is some of the first evidence of a direct relationship between Facebook friends and the most "toxic" elements of narcissistic personality disorder.

Researchers at Western Illinois University studied the Facebook habits of 294 students, aged between 18 and 65, and measured two "socially disruptive" elements of narcissism - Grandiose Exhibitionism (GE) and Entitlement/Exploitativeness (EE).

GE includes "self-absorption, vanity, superiority, and exhibitionistic tendencies" and people who score high on this aspect of narcissism need to be constantly at the centre of attention.

They often say shocking things and inappropriately self-disclose because they cannot stand to be ignored or waste a chance of self-promotion.

The EE aspect includes "a sense of deserving respect and a willingness to manipulate and take advantage of others".

The research revealed that the higher someone scored on aspects of GE, the greater the number of friends they had on Facebook, with some amassing more than 800.

Those scoring highly on EE and GG were also more likely to accept friend requests from strangers and seek social support, but less likely to provide it, according to the research.

Carol Craig, a social scientist and chief executive of the Centre for Confidence and Well-being, said young people in Britain were becoming increasingly narcissistic and Facebook provided a platform for the disorder.

"The way that children are being educated is focusing more and more on the importance of self-esteem - on how you are seen in the eyes of others.

"This method of teaching has been imported from the US and is 'all about me'.

"Facebook provides a platform for people to self-promote by changing profile pictures and showing how many hundreds of friends you have. I know of some who have more than 1,000."

Dr Viv Vignoles, senior lecturer in social psychology at Suss*x University, said there was "clear evidence" from studies in the US that college students were becoming increasingly narcissistic.

But he added: "Whether the same is true of non-college students or of young people in other countries, such as the UK, remains an open question, as far as I know.

"Without understanding the causes underlying the historical change in US college students, we do not know whether these causes are factors that are relatively specific to American culture... or whether they are factors that are more general, for example new technologies such as mobile phones and Facebook."

Dr Vignoles said the correlational nature of the latest study meant it was difficult to be certain whether individual differences in narcissism led to certain patterns of Facebook behaviour, whether patterns of Facebook behaviour led to individual differences in narcissism, or a bit of both.

Christopher Carpenter, who ran the study, said: "In general, the 'dark side' of Facebook requires more research in order to better understand Facebook's socially beneficial and harmful aspects in order to enhance the former and curtail the latter.

"If Facebook is to be a place where people go to repair their damaged ego and seek social support, it is vitally important to discover the potentially negative communication one might find on Facebook and the kinds of people likely to engage in them.

"Ideally, people will engage in pro-social Facebooking rather than anti-social me-booking."

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Yahoo accuses Facebook of patent infringement

Yahoo! filed a lawsuit against Facebook on Monday accusing the social networking giant of patent infringement.

Yahoo!, in the suit filed in US District Court for the Northern District of California, accused Facebook of infringing on 10 of its patents.

“For much of the technology upon which Facebook is based Yahoo! got there first and was therefore granted patents by the United States Patent Office to protect those innovations,” Yahoo! said in the suit, a copy of which was posted online by the website All Things Digital.

“Yahoo!’s patents relate to cutting edge innovations in online products, including in messaging, news feed generation, social commenting, advertising display, preventing click fraud and privacy controls,” the suit said.

“Facebook’s entire social network model, which allows users to create profiles and connect with, among other things, persons and businesses, is based on Yahoo!’s patented social networking technology,” it said.

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Wife uncovers husband's 'bigamy' on Facebook

The man's estranged wife clicked on a link to his new partner's Facebook page to see them with a wedding cake, court documents in Washington state say.

The woman then contacted the man's mother - and later the authorities.

Prison officer Alan L O'Neill has been charged with bigamy and is due to appear in court later this month.

Continue reading the main story

“

Start Quote

Facebook is now a place where people discover things about each other they end up reporting to law enforcement”

Mark Lindquist

Pierce County Prosecutor

Court documents say that Mr O'Neill - under his previous name of Alan Fulk - married in 2001, moved out in 2009, changed his name and remarried without divorcing.

The first wife noticed Mr O'Neill had a new woman in his life when Facebook recommended her as a "friend".

"Wife number one went to wife number two's page and saw a picture of her and her husband with a wedding cake," Pierce County Prosecutor Mark Lindquist told the Associated Press news agency.

Wife number one then called the defendant's mother.

"An hour later the defendant arrived at (wife number one's) apartment and she asked him several times if they were divorced. The defendant said, 'No, we are still married'," the court records say.

The charges say that neither Mr O'Neill nor his first wife had filed for divorce.

Mr O'Neill allegedly told wife number one not to report his other marriage and that he would fix it, the court documents say. But instead she alerted the authorities.

"Facebook is now a place where people discover things about each other they end up reporting to law enforcement," Mr Lindquist said.

Mr O'Neill faces up to a year in jail if convicted.

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Facebook hit by technical problem across Europe

Users reported problems accessing Facebook.com in many countries, including the UK, for about two hours.

The social network's smartphone and tablet apps were also affected, users on Twitter reported.

Facebook apologised for the incident and said the issue was now resolved.

"Today we experienced technical difficulties causing the site to be unavailable for a number of users in Europe," the company said in a statement.

"The issue has been resolved and everyone should now have access to Facebook. We apologise for any inconvenience."

More isolated accounts of inaccessibility were posted by users in further afield places such as Pakistan and South Korea.

Productivity surge

The site has about 850 million users worldwide and many took to Twitter to share information about the down time, with #facebookdown quickly becoming a trending topic on the microblogging site.

Most took a humorous view, with user @Purple_Cow tweeting: "#Facebook is #down, expect a surge in productivity in offices everywhere today."

However, some website owners who make use of the Facebook Connect service - which allows people to log into external sites by using their Facebook account - were left frustrated by the technical issues.

"Facebook two hours down time this morning may make us rethink our login strategy," remarked Tariq Krim, founder of cloud-based service Jolicloud and news aggregator Netvibes.

Launched in February 2004, last month Facebook announced plans to float on the stock market. It seeks to raise $5bn (£3.16bn) from the move, making it the biggest sale of shares by an internet company.

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Facebook goes down in several countries

Social network website Facebook, which has around 850 million users worldwide, went down in several mainly European countries on Wednesday for around two hours, users and the company said.

“Today we experienced technical difficulties causing the site to be unavailable for a number of users in Europe,” Facebook said in a statement.

“The issue has been resolved and everyone should now have access to Facebook. We apologise for any inconvenience.”

The outage affected facebook.com as well as its apps for mobile phones and tablets.

As a result, facebookdown was the top trending hashtag in France on microblogging site Twitter on Wednesday.

The outage could be a result of a disconnect with Facebook’s servers holding users’ personal data.

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Tajikistan blocks Facebook and several news sites

The Tajikistan government ordered Internet providers on Saturday to block Facebook, along with several independent media sites, a spokeswoman for the country’s web-provider association told AFP.

“Internet providers received a spoken order from government agents to block the sites,” said Parvina Ibodova, president of the association.

“We are minions. We get our licences from the authorities and that’s why, as though we were circuit breakers, we are obedient and cut access to the sites.”

Ibodova said about a dozen Internet providers had since Saturday blocked access to Facebook and several independent sites including tjknews.com and centrasia.ru.

The government’s communication agency declined to comment.

Tadjikistan is a former Soviet republic in Central Asia that borders Afghanistan. The poorest of the former Soviet nations, it has been ruled with an iron fist by Emomali Rakhmon since 1992.

Ibodova said she did not know if the decision to block the sites was political, adding she had been told it was for technical and security reasons.

The blocked sites regularly publish articles critical of Rakhmon’s regime.

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President Goodluck Jonathan plead With Facebook Friends

President Goodluck Jonathan has called on his Facebook friends to pray for the success of the reform initiatives his administration is putting in place.

Posted on his facebook page, Jonathan said that the initiatives were not only about the present, but for the country’s future too.

He noted that in May 2011, he signed the Freedom of Information Bill into an Act, and stated his commitment to run a transparent, open, sincere and accountable government.

The President said that his government would act within the rule of law and the protection of the country’s common destiny.

”In taking the commitment of transparency to heart, I gave my word to the Nigerian people that this administration would put in place policies, institutions and structures so as to ensure transparency in every sphere of our governance trajectory.

”I believe that the mandate Nigerians gave to me following the election that was acclaimed as free, fair and transparent is to do all within my constitutional powers for the good of our country.

”My dear friends on facebook, this administration has commenced a series of reforms in many areas including agriculture, power, energy, security, education among others.

”And I want to specially request your support in prayers so as to ensure the success of these initiatives,” he said.

According to him, regardless of the orchestrated distraction, he will continue to place national interest above partisan politics.

He called on those who might continue to view issues only from the prisms of partisan politics to take a break.

”Election campaigns are over, it is the season to deliver on good governance.

”In all the areas we have slated for reforms, we have, regardless of party, ideology or other interest, assembled and will continue to do so, very distinguished men and women of outstanding pedigree to carry out assignments in our nations interest.

”We must reward and call to service excellence and patriotism at all times,” Jonathan said. (NAN)

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Facebook Palava – Man Hires Hitman To Kill His Wife’s Facebook Friend

Silvanus Satya Naidu was so upset when he wrongly thought his wife of 28 years was going to leave him and move to Sydney, that he tried to hire an assassin. The church and charity worker resorted to extreme measures instead of talking to his wife, who had no intention of leaving him.

But Naidu found himself in the Supreme Court in Brisbane on criminal charges when the hitman turned out to be a police covert operator.

Justice James Douglas sentenced Naidu to seven years’ jail, but because of the mitigating circumstances and 345 days Naidu had spent on remand set a parole eligibility date of Februay 19 next year.

“It is a clear case of a deliberate and premeditated action which was not in accordance with your normal personality and behaviour,” he said.

Earlier, Naidu, 51, of Rocklea, pleaded guilty to attempting to procure the murder of James Asher Kumar between October 28, 2010, and February 20 last year.

Prosecutor Caroline Marco told the court Naidu’s wife had begun communicating with Kumar, an old university friend who lived in Sydney, by Facebook and the telephone.

She said Naidu was upset by Kumar’s attention to his wife and it gradually built into an obsession.

Ms Marco detailed how Naidu originally approached a workmate to see if he could have Kumar beaten up.

The workmate reported the matter to police when it became clear Naidu was considering killing Kumar to get him out of his family’s life.

Ms Marco told the court how the workmate eventually put Naidu in contact with a “hitman” from New Zealand named “Moses”.

The hitman was in fact a police covert operator who met with Naidu to work out the details of the murder.

The court was played covert police tapes in which Naidu suggested killing Kumar by pushing him over a cliff in a car, shooting him or strangling him.

Ms Marco said the price for the job was $5000 but Naidu had handed over only $500 before he was arrested.

Jeff Hunter,SC, for Naidu, said his client was previously a model citizen who was heavily involved with his church, had qualifications in science, engineering and naturopathy, and had funded a secure house for disadvantaged people in Logan.

Mr Hunter said Naidu had also helped many prisoners while on remand.

He said it was clear case Naidu had acted completely out of character and had been under stress from work place bullying, two deaths in his family and losing property in the Brisbane floods.

Mr Hunter said the had reached a farcical level at times with Naidu even offering to pay for the hit with a cheque from the Flood Relief Fund,

“Instead of acting rationally and speaking with his wife my client did this. He is not a bad man but was in a bad place at the time,” Mr Hunter said.

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Meet The Woman Who Travels to 13 Countries To Meet All Her 325 Facebook Friends

American woman traveled around the world to meet her 325 Facebook friends, NEWSMEN has learned.

Prior to the trip, 51-year-old ArLynn Presser has never left her town, in fact, she hardly left her home. She spent most of her time online chatting with her Facebook friends.

But on 31st of Dec, 2010, she made a New Year’s resolution to meet all 325 of her Facebook friends in person. She called her project “Face to Facebook”

For a person who was terrified of flying and could never get on a plane before, this was certainly a daunting task. In the end, she did a great job, traveling over 13 countries and taking over 39 flights.

By the end of 2011, she had met 292 friends, about 90% of what she had intended to. ArLynn had been to Taiwan, Korea, Philippines, Dubai, Italy, Malaysia, Ireland, England, Germany and four other countries.

A few of her Facebook friends weren’t keen on her idea of meeting them, so they unfriended or blocked her, 18 people ignored her repeated requests to meet, two were profiles of pets, and five people had passed away.

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Nigeria ranked Third Position in Facebook ranking

The number of Nigerians that have signed up to Facebook,as a means of communication and interactions, has increased from 400, 000 in the last four years crossing 4.3 million mark at the end of December, 2011.

Avaialable report from the global 2011 Facebook usage report of the World Internet Status, Nigeria ranked third position in terms of the number of Facebook users in the African continent.

Coming ahead of Nigeria according to the report, were Egypt and South Africa with 9.4 million and 4.8 million users respectively.

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FACEBOOK NURSERY /PRIMARY SCHOOL IN LAGOS

This is a nursery and primary sch in lagos state ,is so unbelievable to believe someone would name his or her school Facebook ,i just cant stop laughing shaa oohhh.

What do you think about this?

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Barrack Obama bans daughters from Facebook

But Barack Obama has admitted he has banned his daughters from using Facebook – because he doesn’t want ‘strangers knowing our business’.

The U.S. President said it ‘does not make much sense’ to put the most private details of his family life on public view.

His elder daughter, Malia, is 13, and just old enough to use Facebook. Her younger sister Sasha is ten.

But Mr Obama said he won’t consider allowing them to join the site until they are both four years older.

His admission seems somewhat ironic, given that he made full use of Facebook and other websites to encourage the young to vote for him in the presidential election – and to raise millions of dollars for his campaign.

In an interview, the President described the thinking behind the Facebook ban as: ‘Why would we want to have a whole bunch of people who we don’t know knowing our business? That doesn’t make much sense.’

But he seemed to have few qualms earlier this week when using Facebook to release the latest official family portrait.

The photograph shows the President sitting with First Lady Michelle and their two daughters, all grinning broadly.

It was given the caption: ‘The new Obama family portrait!’ and has so far drawn 71,000 ‘likes’ and 11,000 comments.

It was released to coincide with Christmas, but is not the official Christmas card, which shows an empty room in the White House with the family dog, Bo, lying by the fire.

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