This online social network for college students includes software that maximizes user safety and security by allowing customized control over downstream information sharing (giving users the power to decide who sees and shares their posted content), considering the information propagation on social networks. Online Social Networks (OSNs) constitute a $4.8 billion industry, which is expected to reach $16 billion by 2017. One of the most important characteristics of OSNs is "word-of-mouth" exchanges, where information is quickly broadcast from friends to friends-of-friends and eventually to acquaintances, potential employers and complete strangers. Millions of OSN users share sensitive information on a daily basis and security settings provide them with little control over what happens to their content after they’ve posted it online. Researchers at the University of Florida have developed an online social network for college students with software that gives users more precise control over the sharing of content that can damage their reputations.
Online Social Network for college students with software that increases safety and security through enhanced control over downstream information sharing
University of Florida researchers have developed an online social network for college students with security software unique to this site that ensures users’ safety and security. The software tracks frequency of interactions to predict the potential information leakage and allows users to use this information to regulate who views and absolutely should not view their posted information. It also includes language- and image-recognition software that assigns rankings to content that may negatively affect a user’s reputation. This minimizes the risk of that information published online will limit job prospects. It also allows companies and employers to connect with prospective employees who are more aware of and conscientious about their online identities.
