how does that happen?

[franksolich]

I recently got an e-mail from someone here I know in real life, at my real-life e-mail address, inviting me to join facebook.

Thank you, but no.

There's a lot of crazies on the internet, and the less the primitives know about the real-life franksolich, the better.  I've been on the internet since mid-1996, and I don't believe I've ever even punched in my social security number or a debit-card number for anything, even on a "safe" site.

Anyway.

At the bottom of this particular e-mail, as an attachment (sent by facebook, not by the member here), there was a customized suggested list of facebook "friends".....every single one of whom I know in real life.

This is scary.

How would facebook know who I know?

[thundley4]

How would facebook know who I know?

Would the person that invited you to join Facebook, also be mutual friends with those on the suggested list?  Facebook does have a thing that you can use to check your address book against known members. Maybe Facebook suggested them based on your friends email list?

[bkg]

How would facebook know who I know?

I'm sure you don't really want to know the answer.

I'm working with a customer right now on the issue of how to do Identity Management/Security in the world of the Mellenial generation... where they voluntarily share everything about their lives on the web... hard to be secure when all of your information is available... on purpose.

I do online banking and purchasing. But anyone who knows me, knows that I have ZERO pictures of me (well, a friend posted one of me @ 6 years old) on Facebook and post very, very little. I just use it to antagonize people like my sister.  

[franksolich]

Would the person that invited you to join Facebook, also be mutual friends with those on the suggested list?  Facebook does have a thing that you can use to check your address book against known members. Maybe Facebook suggested them based on your friends email list?

I don't think this member knows any of the "suggested 'friends'".

These are people who live around here, in the Sandhills.

[franksolich]

I'm sure you don't really want to know the answer.

I do online banking and purchasing. But anyone who knows me, knows that I have ZERO pictures of me (well, a friend posted one of me @ 6 years old) on Facebook and post very, very little. I just use it to antagonize people like my sister.

There's one photograph of franksolich still "alive" on the internet, but as it was taken during the early 1980s, which is now a very long time ago, no harm done.

At our old home, I one time posted a photograph of myself taken for my passport, just before I left for the socialist paradises of the workers and peasants with free medical care for all, in the early 1990s--that one more closely resembled what I still look like, even though it was taken more than 15 years ago (some of us don't age as fast as others; just lucky, I guess).

But that was posted before our old home crashed, and all was lost.  I assume that particular photograph is nowhere to be found any more.

Generally, when people on the internet ask me what I look like in real life, I point to an old photograph of my fellow alum Skins, which is a remarkably close physical resemblence, minus his eyeglasses and ears.

[thundley4]

I don't think this member knows any of the "suggested 'friends'".

These are people who live around here, in the Sandhills.

You might consider searching FB for your real name to see if someone possibly set up an account using your email address.  Some nefarious DUmmie perhaps?  I believe you could also just search to see if someone used your email address directly.

[Chris]

I used my oldest email address (1997) when I joined Facebook.  It came up with people I haven't emailed/spoken to since 1999.  I didn't recognize some of them

If someone else has your email address and they use their account to sign up to Facebook, you'll probably get an invitation.  A lot of that stuff is automated.

[Oceander]

I recently got an e-mail from someone here I know in real life, at my real-life e-mail address, inviting me to join facebook.

Thank you, but no.

There's a lot of crazies on the internet, and the less the primitives know about the real-life franksolich, the better.  I've been on the internet since mid-1996, and I don't believe I've ever even punched in my social security number or a debit-card number for anything, even on a "safe" site.

Anyway.

At the bottom of this particular e-mail, as an attachment (sent by facebook, not by the member here), there was a customized suggested list of facebook "friends".....every single one of whom I know in real life.

This is scary.

How would facebook know who I know?

How many "suggested friends" were there?  If the facebook app has a geographic hook of some sort (e.g., where the person who tried to "friend" you lives), plus the characteristics of the person who sent you the join request - which are likely to be close to yours given that you seem to be friendly with this person, and it seems quite possible that the probabilities could just work that way, so the fact that you know all of them is, more or less, coincidence.

[bkg]

Just noticed... Facebook suggests I become friends with people who are already on my friends lise.

[Toastedturningtidelegs]

Just noticed... Facebook suggests I become friends with people who are already on my friends lise.

I get that too bkg. That damn site is so buggy it's ridiculous! The chat function on there drives me nuts!

[Toastedturningtidelegs]

I recently got an e-mail from someone here I know in real life, at my real-life e-mail address, inviting me to join facebook.

Thank you, but no.

There's a lot of crazies on the internet, and the less the primitives know about the real-life franksolich, the better.  I've been on the internet since mid-1996, and I don't believe I've ever even punched in my social security number or a debit-card number for anything, even on a "safe" site.

Anyway.

At the bottom of this particular e-mail, as an attachment (sent by facebook, not by the member here), there was a customized suggested list of facebook "friends".....every single one of whom I know in real life.

This is scary.

How would facebook know who I know?

You don't have to use your real name Frank! I would give a gmail address or hotmail whichever! The primitives have their own little group on there!

[franksolich]

You don't have to use your real name Frank! I would give a gmail address or hotmail whichever! The primitives have their own little group on there!

But then what happens when a malicious malevolent person does some deep research, and connects the fake name with the real name?

[Toastedturningtidelegs]

But then what happens when a malicious malevolent person does some deep research, and connects the fake name with the real name?

Could they do that now with your identity here? As long as you haven't linked Franksolich with your real name i would think you would be ok. You can also set your account to private on Facebook and only let certain people who you know and like onto it.

[thundley4]

He can also set up an account under the Name Frank Solich.

[Toastedturningtidelegs]

He can also set up an account under the Name Frank Solich.

Yes! That's kinda where i was going!

[zeitgeist]

I recently got an e-mail from someone here I know in real life, at my real-life e-mail address, inviting me to join facebook.

Thank you, but no.

There's a lot of crazies on the internet, and the less the primitives know about the real-life franksolich, the better.  I've been on the internet since mid-1996, and I don't believe I've ever even punched in my social security number or a debit-card number for anything, even on a "safe" site.

Anyway.

At the bottom of this particular e-mail, as an attachment (sent by facebook, not by the member here), there was a customized suggested list of facebook "friends".....every single one of whom I know in real life.

This is scary.

How would facebook know who I know?

Let me skate out onto thin ice here and speculate that you use either Outlook or Outlook express as an email client.  If so they may have read your address book file and then compared it to those of current Facebook members.

Of course how the managed to read the address file on your computer is another matter.  You would be amazed at what can be dredged back up from the depths of the internet if you are determined enough. 

I recently had a trojan lodge itself in my browser.  ( Yes I run a pc and windows so I know it is to be expected ) The result of that has been days of testing various virus packages to see what they find.  The results have been amazing. 

[franksolich]

Let me skate out onto thin ice here and speculate that you use either Outlook or Outlook express as an email client.  If so they may have read your address book file and then compared it to those of current Facebook members.

Of course how the managed to read the address file on your computer is another matter.  You would be amazed at what can be dredged back up from the depths of the internet if you are determined enough. 

I recently had a trojan lodge itself in my browser.  ( Yes I run a pc and windows so I know it is to be expected ) The result of that has been days of testing various virus packages to see what they find.  The results have been amazing.

Yeah, you're right, sir; my real-life real-name e-mail is Outlook Express.

[zeitgeist]

Yeah, you're right, sir; my real-life real-name e-mail is Outlook Express.

.

I experienced a very similar thing with Facebook.  A friend from long ago wanted me to join, the next thing you know it gave me two 'friends' who obviously were culled from addresses only in my address book.  How it got in and out is the question. 

After recently having a malware redirection program get in while I was running virus scanning software I have begun to re-investigate exactly how secure secure is. Must admit one does feel violated when this stuff happens.