When Facebook implemented smart friend lists, their editing controls moved — to the left-hand column of the homepage, along with the top right of your friends’ profiles.

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Facebook is yet again in the news again over privacy concerns. This time however, it doesn’t revolve around obvious and clearly visible issues, but around the suspicious way they work with cookies, which form part of the the hidden tracking mechanisms of the site.

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Which site offers more privacy, Facebook or Google Plus? A pretty good comparison between the two appears in an infographic below.

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If you’re friends with your boss on Facebook, now is a great time to reboot your relationship.

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Facebook’s changes to the site in the countdown to the f8 conference includes one that isn’t ruffling any feathers yet: A new tab on pages lets people see how their friends interact with the page.

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Facebook is suggesting that you subscribe to people’s public status updates and customize how much of their feeds you receive.

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If you’re selling anything on Facebook, you need to be worried about protecting your customer’s data.

And there’s plenty to worry about here: A recent ShopVisible survey found that two out of every five online retailers have been hacked.

Learning of a data breach can kill a shopper’s trust in a retailer, but taking extra security can mitigate that.

This process requires significant investment in time, personnel and infrastructure.

Here are five critical steps toward providing a secure database for your company and your customers.

1. Patch

Merchants can find it difficult to keep up with security patches, but this is a critical piece in defending your customers and fans from breeches.

2. Scan Everything

It is important to identify your vulnerabilities and know where your weak points are.

3. Hack Yourself First

There are companies that specialize in hacking exercises. These specialists are able to enter your system, simulating a breach in order to show your weaknesses.

4. Communicate With Fans

Although customers might feel burdened by the extra precautions they have to take to prove their identity online, good communication can help them understand that it is in their best interests.

5. Prepare Your Personnel

Make sure your employees, contractors or anyone else with access to your data recognize and practice the highest level of security standards. Ensure that your everyone understands that storing too much data is risky.

Perhaps the most critical advice of all is to not let your guard down. It is a mistake to assume that you are secure.

Be certain that you are dealing with tech companies that are providing technology that maintains security standards.

Even the new F-tailers need to hire professionals that will innovate with the changing pace of technology, as new mobile devices appear on the scene and as social media commerce transforms the way customers browse and buy.

Guest writer Shannon Johnston is senior vice president of operations for ShopVisible.

Image courtesy of Ilin Sergey/Shutterstock.

Facebook has posted a “coming soon” announcement about the forthcoming changes to the site.
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Facebook announced  a major overhaul of privacy and publishing controls on user profiles, plus new tagging and sharing functionality.

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Facebook announced a series of upcoming changes this week, and while most of the attention was on a revamping of the privacy system, the transformation of places is possibly more significant.
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