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relationships.
As such, publicity (and public labels such
as 'friends'), exchange, and sharing are integral
and definitive parts of the SNS culture where
the emphasis is not entirely on the authenticity
of the information but the elements of connec-
tion and connectivity it can create (Nardi, 2005).
Social networking sites can also capture the shift
in identities of users when they transition from
one life phase into another. Such transitions can
include progress from school to workplace where
the social connections and identity of the user can
shift. In tandem with this, DiMicco and Millen
(2007: 383) argue that these platforms are complex
as such sites can reflect the fact that users have
'transitioned between life stages and expanded
their number of social connections, and these sites
can assist users in maintaining social networks and
diverse social relations.' This then entails a degree
of managing self-identity on such spaces and
perhaps the creation of multiple identities through
multiple profiles to delineate a distinction between
corporate and non-coporate identites, for example,
or between formal and professional relationships
compared to long-term friendships. DiMicco and
Millen's (2007: 386) research reveals that multiple
identities can nevertheless be burdensome where
users may require more technical knowledge to
navigate access control mechanisms which may
deny access to one set of users while allowing a
target audience to view selected profiles.
Gross & Acquisti (2005), point out that the
most common model of the SNS is the presenta-
tion of the participant's profile and the visualiza-
tion of his or her network of relations to others.
Such sites can encourage the presentation of a
member's profile (including their hobbies and
interests and the publication of personal and
identifiable photos) to the rest of the community
through technical specifications, while visibility
of information can be highly variable amongst
such sites. Most networking sites make it easy
for third parties, from hackers to government
agencies, to access participants' data without the
site's direct collaboration, thereby exposing us-
ers to risks ranging from identity theft to online
and physical stalking and blackmailing (Gross &
Acquisti, 2005).
Additionally users browse neighbouring re-
gions of their social network as they are likely
to find content that is of interest to them. Thus
search engines may use social networks to rank
Internet search results relative to the interests of
users' neighbourhoods in the social network.
risks
The casualness with which people reveal personal
details online is related to the different norms
people apply to online and offline situations where
these variant norms have implications for notions
of privacy, authenticity, community, and identity.
Research conducted by Mislove et al. (2007:41)
on sites such as Flickr, LiveJournal, Orkut and
YouTube reveals that these sites are the portals
of entry into the Internet for millions of users.
Equally, they invite advertisements as well as the
pursuit of commercial interest; this means users in
these networks tend to trust each other having been
brought together through common interests.
Trust
has been defined in various ways in sociological
literature. Golbeck et al. (2003) define it as cred-
ibility or reliability in human interaction where it
can entail the according of a degree of credence
to a person through interpersonal communication.
With specific reference to information sharing,
Mori et al. (2005:83) infer that trust could relate
to reliability with regard to how a person handles
information that has been shared or reciprocated.
Gips et al. 2005 argue that the 'social' aspect of
these networks is self-reinforcing; this means to be
trusted one must make many 'friends' and create
many links that will slowly pull the user into the
core of activities.
Barnes (2006), in citing Benniger, postulates
that electronic forms of communication are gradu-
ally replacing traditional modes of interpersonal
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