Madison Who’s Who Blog

Peer to peer network is a term that is usually employed in the IT world. However, the geek interpretation of a peer to peer network parallels nicely with how businesses and individuals alike are using social networking sites to network with their peers.

Social networking and business networking is essential to succeeding in today’s business world. A productive peer to peer network in business is, like a computer network, dependent on the power and energy that the participants in that network bring provide collectively. A peer to peer network of lethargic and complacent people will never empower a career or promote a business. On the other hand, a peer network of motivated and business minded individuals can accomplish more than they ever could individually.

Be it news about opportunities, business innovations or the best techniques to achieve specific goals, a people peer to peer network can become the vital circuitry that wires a career and keeps it energized.

Can social or peer-to-peer network sites change the outcome of the presidential election? The latest GMI Poll found that voters are increasingly using social or peer-to-peer networking sites like MySpace to help them decide which presidential candidate to vote for. It’s not just youngsters who are checking out the candidates’ profiles either. 62 percent of people who say they’ve looked at a candidate’s MySpace of Facebook page are over the age of 30.

The poll revealed that 17 percent of consumers have looked at presidential candidates’ MySpace, Facebook, or other social networking pages. After visiting a candidate’s page, more than half (53 percent) say they are more likely to vote for the candidate. 64 percent say they felt like they personally knew the candidate better after visiting their social networking page.

Andrew Rasiej, founder of the nonpartisan web site techPresident.com said, “The conversations about politics that used to happen around water coolers, dining room tables, or over the back fence, are now on steroids because social networks amplify and present opinion so effectively.”

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Social and peer to peer network sites such as Facebook and MySpace are causing headaches for some college administrators. The University of Ohio has been flooded with calls from parents requesting room mate, or dorm room changes for their children. Apparently, parents are using social networking sites to check up on their children’s room mates, as well as their living quarters.

The University of Ohio reported that before this academic year they had about 45 requests which have been directly attributed to information that somebody saw on the Facebook site. This is a the largest of roommate change requests they have ever seen before school even starts. Thanks Facebook, oh, and who ever said parents aren’t internet savvy?

The New Jersey attorney general asked a dozen Internet social networking sites to find out whether convicted New Jersey sex offenders have created profiles on their sites. The request came after the state found at least 269 convicted New Jersey sex offenders had registered on the popular Internet social networking site MySpace.com. MySpace.com found 29,000 total profiles created by convicted sex offenders, which clearly violates the conditions of parole for such offenders.

Among the peer to peer network sites that received the request from New Jersey’s AG were Xanga.com, Facebook, Community Connect, TagWorld, Bebo, MyYearbook.com, Tagged, Friendster, LiveJournal, Imeem, Hi5 and Gaia Online.

The cooperation of peer to peer network sites with law enforcement can help make the internet safer. Protecting people from the dangers posed by sexual predators who may use peer to peer networking sites to contact victims is the goal.

The popularity of peer to peer networking (social networking) sites appears to be dependent on the audience’s geographic region. Here is the breakdown of how social networking site rate based on geographic regions.

North America. Both MySpace and Facebook attract predominately North American audiences, around two-thirds according to comScore.

Europe. Bebo is the choice of European social networkers with 63 percent of its users coming from that region and

Asia-Pacific Islands. Friendster attracts 89 percent of its audience from Asia-Pacific.

Latin America. Orkut is the darling of users in the Latin American countries.

Peer to peer networks are growing in popularity on a global scale. So, it would appear that social networking is not the fad it was once thought to be but rather an activity that is being woven into the very fabric of the global internet.

The new face of global networking has names such as myspace, vox, twitter, and facebook. But those are internet sites right? Yes. The internet provides opportunities for effective global networking that have never before been available. There are no planes to catch, no need to put on a suit or drive to the office. Effective Global networking is literally at your fingertips.

Social networking sites provide an invaluable foundation for global business. Not only is it an essential part of growing your online business. It’s also a fantastic way to cultivate business relationships globally and widen your market reach to customers beyond your own shores. Customers who may have been out of your reach traditionally are now well within your grasp.

Effective Global Networking Tip: There are lots of places on the internet where you can go to network ? forums, message boards, groups and other networks.

Social networking websites such as Facebook and MySpace are turning the “me” generation into the “we” generation. Such social networking sites focus on networking and building peers through common interests.  These types of peer to peer networks are fast growing trend in social marketing.

 The aim of peer networking is to put people in touch with others who have faced similar situations and life experiences.   This enables people to share experiences, along with anecdotes and solutions to life’s problems. Most of the social networking sites out there today use modern web technology to allow secure, private peer to peer chatting.

 Sharing experiences and building friends aren’t the only reason the “we” generation is turning to peer to peer networking.  Networking is also a valuable way to get career advice, and even locate a job.  Chances are that someone in your peer network knows someone who is looking to hire someone with your skills.  Members of the “we” generation are capitalizing on the powers of peer marketing to make friends as well as secure their futures.

 Peer Networking Tip:  Peer to peer networking is great for building a network of people who have similar interests as you.  Imagine this:  If you are networked with 100 people, who are also networked with 100 people, all of the sudden you have 10,000 people in your extended peer network.  What a great way to market your ideas, gain exposure, or get career advice and opportunities.

Business network tips often reference security measures that safeguard your critical information. Yet, as one associate recently commented, too many otherwise savvy professionals allow for too many vulnerabilities online, be it the information supplied on social networking sites or the details in their online resume. The assumption that a particular site’s security is ‘top notch’ does not take into account the ingenuity of identity thefts.

“The Federal Trade Commission reported that about 10 million Americans, or 5% of all adults, fall prey to identity theft each year, with an average loss of $4,800.

The economics of cybercrime are simple, says Jay Foley, co-executive director at the Identity Theft Resource Center: The risks are low and the rewards high.

Few law enforcement officers specialize in identity theft crimes, and jurisdictional questions make tracking down and charging the criminals difficult. The Internet provides cover for the bad guys.

As Foley put it: “Criminals are now asking themselves, ‘Why should I rob someone, get maybe $200, and face 7 to 10 years in jail if I am convicted when I could commit identity theft, make $100,000 or more, and face at most one year in jail?’”
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Global networking has made everyone more vigilant on many levels. Hopefully, your online security solutions will present far fewer complications than those you deal with traveling.The link above offers simple, solid advice on passwords, encryptions and other precautions.

Effective global networking requires a different demeanor and protocol for every culture within which it operates. If one is conducting business in the UK, apparently one will have to adapt their network strategies to the more formal and work oriented business model still practiced there. Apparently they have yet to discover the efficacy in online network in building business relationships.

“Traditional breeding grounds for doing deals and making new business contacts like the pub, golf club or social club have fallen foul of the work ethic and professionalism held by today’s entrepreneurs, according to a new survey by Barclays Local Business. However, despite shunning an informal, social background to do business, the internet is also failing to prove itself as a meaningful way to meet new customers and suppliers.

Despite the recent growth of social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook, which experienced 89 per cent growth last year, there seems to be a lack of good sites for businesses to network. Only 8 per cent of those surveyed used the internet to network.”

Entrepreneurial efforts are reported to be at an all time high in the UK and unlike the extremely laid back entrepreneurial personality most associated with young business start-ups in America, the spirit in the UK has taken on a more subdued and conservative character.

“…the new world of the Internet is still to catch on, especially for networking, as entrepreneurs would rather go to a formal networking event rather than make contact with people online where only 9 percent do any networking.

“Perhaps it is down to the fact that many small businesses are sole traders and organized events allow you to meet others, and discuss issues face to face, something a chat room will never be able to do. At Barclays, we believe that it’s vital that businesses are encouraged to get together and are given the kind of forums or advice, whether in person or online, where they can spend their time most productively.”
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Business referrals primarily come from peer networking sites dedicated strictly to business. A great many people maintain more than one online network, adding social networking sites to the mix as well. For an undetermined reason, normally cautious web travelers let down their guard in social networking sites.

“Research conducted by the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) reveals that a whopping 74 percent of social networking users divulge personal information, such as their e-mail address, name and birthday.

Not only do they reveal this potentially harmful information, but they also engage in other risky behaviors, such as downloading files and responding to unsolicited e-mails from fellow members.

NCSA research shows that 83 percent download unknown files from other people’s profiles — an action that could lead to identity theft, computer spyware, viruses and other risks.”

Cybercriminals are well aware of the ripe opportunities this casual attitude presents and are cashing in through a number of schemes. Here is a synopsis of cautions to be aware of, follow the link for more.

• Beware of scammers. Criminals scan social networking sites to find potential victims for customized scams, from phony lotteries to illegitimate business opportunities to fake high school reunions….

• Exercise caution when clicking on links or downloading files. Scam artists often post links to infected ad banners in their profiles. Avoid opening links or downloads from strangers…
• Protect your personal information. Identity thieves can easily find enough photos and personal information on social networking sites to steal your identity…

• Be proactive in your efforts to thwart identity thieves. Adding a “Credit Freeze” or “Fraud Alert” on your credit report at the three major credit bureaus can help you avoid identity theft….
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