A phenomenon, a revelation, a lifestyle, the eighth wonder of the world… I can just go on and on and might probably even run out of synonyms that will do justice to this 21st Century marvel. It’s facebook I’m talking about. There are very few websites or companies that can boast the success Facebook enjoys. It has almost become a religion now (& I’m a follower I confess). In the 5 years of Facebook it has changed the way people live.

Facebook calculates that around the world, there are more than 800 million users online who spend more than 3 billion minutes on Facebook every day.

It’s more like a virtual meeting place where people can hang out with friends. They can discuss on different topics, share information, and exchange files and pictures. people use these sites as a platform to meet long lost friend and batch mates, whereas there are others for whom it becomes a bridge to meet their future love. Some people also use these websites to promote their blogs and services. It has made world a small place and everyone can stay connected.

But I’s not all sunshine and roses. There are some drawbacks too.

Perhaps the biggest online social networking drawback is that it makes identity theft easier. It is easy to mask real self behind a fake profile.
Cyber criminals analyse social networking profiles for information that can help them to steal your identity.
While you need to add some personally identifiable information for people to discover you online, it is advisable that you don't go overboard to post every little personal detail about you. Privacy settings can be changed to "friends only," so that only those with your approval are allowed to view your profile. . Avoid posting personal information that is not necessary. While you may add your birth day and month (else your friends will forget to wish you on your birthday), you can avoid adding the year of birth.


Don't befriend unknown people: If you don't know them, it might not be worth the while to be friends with them. People think it’s a matter of pride if they have 400-500 friends. Better have just 100 friends whm you can trust.

If you are angry over something, the online world is not always the best place to vent it out. Take a deep breath, close your eyes, count up to 10 and then log out. Even in the offline world people don't like abusive people. Abusing and trolling lowers your online credibility, make you lose friends and also can get you blocked. It is social networking and not unsocial networking, a bit of civility is expected
Before posting a message on your profile or sending it someone check it twice. You don't want to send a soft message to the wrong person or you may even consider rephrasing a sentence that can have a double meaning.

In a craze to be noticed people put their good, bad and ugly selves out there for all to see. Until a while ago, we fought and made up with friends in private. But the latest wave of voyeurism encourages you to go public with your spats, however close the relationship is.


Friends may tag you in pictures or videos that you'd rather not have others see. If photos are posted up and you are tagged in them, chances are a professor, employer or one of your parents will see these and not be very y happy about it. There are many people who have not been hired because the employer did not like what they saw on the applicant's Facebook profile. So it's important to monitor your Facebook pictures and un-tag any that look like they could cause problems.

Facebook wastes a ton of time. It can be pretty addicting, like any website, so make sure you set a time-limit for how long you can spend on the websiteRemember that Facebook won’t shut down your account if you don't come up with something new every half-an-hour.Facebook is good for staying in contact with friends, but you need to understand that these sites can be used to some extent, but not over the limit.


The good news is that the pros for social networking outweigh the cons. And with a few healthy habits, you can avoid or minimize the drawbacks. Just remember to be careful and responsible .As with everything, use your common sense.