Your Web Presence

A good thing gone bad 23/01/2010

So what could possibly go wrong?

Famous last words, actually a lot could go wrong. What we need to understand is that everything and I mean everything, we post on the internet says something about us as a person. People will judge you on what they find about you on the internet whether you put it there or not. Your Web Presence is your resume for potential career prospects, it’s your “rap sheet” with law enforcement agencies like the police and it’s your identity out there in the ether ready for theft.

Let’s look at some examples of what could go wrong.

In March 2009 MSNBC reported that “theconnor” tweeted “Cisco just offered me a job! Now I have to weigh the utility of a fatty paycheck against the daily commute to San Jose and hating the work.” this tweet was seen by Cisco and the job offer was rescinded.

Also in April 2009 News.com reported that a Swiss employee had been fired for updating her Facebook status while supposedly at home sick.

The most recent of these was in December 2009 when The Courier Mail reported that an employee of Deloitte in London sent out a seemingly harmless Christmas Awards email to a few friends in the office. Within hours this email had not only gone outside this small group but outside the office and was now travelling the world. The sender resigned.

These articles are just a few of the thousands of reported cases of people being fired for something that they did on the internet. Most of these people probably felt that they weren’t doing anything wrong but in most cases it was a friend that bought the incident to the attention of the bosses.

So what can get you sacked?

Really that depends on where you work but employees should know exactly what their employer’s policies are for E-mail and Internet usage, because workers are losing their jobs after computer-based missteps.

There are many websites out there that discuss planning your web presence and how the internet can get you sacked. These are a great place to start if you are interested in reading more.

Always remember what Grandma used to say “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all”

Web Presence 17/01/2010

So what is “Web Presence”?

Wikipedia definition is “An Internet footprint is the impact an individual, business, organization or corporation has on the World Wide Web and, practicably, the traceable residue that it leaves behind through this interaction.” (Wikipedia, 2009)

A Google definition search returns “Your accessibility and availability on the NET. Your ability to be found easily by viewers.” (GreyFoxWebWorks, n.d.)

Curtin University curriculum defines the term as “Everything we publish on the Web says something about who we are.” (CurtinUniversity, 2009)

As defined above our Web Presence has an impact and is traceable, enables others to find us and is everything we publish on the web.

Today we have Web 2.0 technologies that encourage communication, collaboration and information sharing which allow us a greater presence on the internet. Web 2.0 technologies include Social Networking sites like Facebook & Myspace, they also include Twitter and social bookmarking sites like Delicious. They are blogs and photo sharing sites like Flikr, anywhere where you can share information.

No longer are we confined to our local geographic area for information and news, today we are global in the information that we can obtain and distribute across the web. We are able to instantly be in contact with loved ones overseas or interstate and we have the ability to keep up with current events as they happen.

BUT with all this instant communication online we are leaving a trail behind that can be tracked and traced.

Is this a good thing or a bad thing?

Academically this is a good thing; you can now talk to other people studying the same topics and have your work peer reviewed much quicker than ever before.

Commercially you are able to establish yourself in Business.

Personally you could be making many mistakes and not realising it.

In today’s competitive market Businesses are now using your Web Presence to supplement job applications and interviews by researching potential employees through the examination of what they find on the Internet.  Law enforcement agencies are also using your web presence to obtain information put on the internet that could potentially establish probable cause. Thieves are using information they find to commit identity theft and finally since the introduction of the Internet many people have had their employment terminated because of something they published on the internet or sent via email.

Always be careful what you put on the internet, my mother always told me “When you’re angry, never put it in writing”

Reference List

CurtinUniversity. (2009). NET34 Mod1.2 Narrating the Self. Retrieved December 11, 2009, from Blackboard Academic Suite, Curtin University of Technology: http://lms.curtin.edu.au/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2fwebapps%2fblackboard%2fexecute%2flauncher%3ftype%3dCourse%26id%3d_29908_1%26url%3d

GreyFoxWebWorks. (n.d.). Web Presence. Retrieved December 28, 2009, from GreyFox Webworks: http://www.greyfoxwebworks.com/webterms.html

Wikipedia. (2009, December 28). Internet Footprint. Retrieved December 28, 2009, from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_presence

Six Degrees of separation 15/01/2010

My topic is Web Presence, protecting your ‘Self’ on the internet. Why did I choose this topic to blog about? Well let me lead you on the 6 degrees of separation journey that led me to my topic of choice.

All my life I have known that one day I would have a university degree, it was never a goal with little steps along the way; it was just something that I have always known. Sadly I didn’t get the marks in my HSC to pursue my chosen accountancy degree, yes I did say accountancy. What would I do?

I went to work, that’s what I did. I did short courses here and there through my work and then one day looking for a change I started studying Cert III in Tourism, a far cry from accounting I know but remember we will be moving through 6 degrees to get to our final destination. I was really enjoying the course but had my doubts about a complete career change as by this stage I was in IT as a Business Systems Analyst.

In a lunchtime conversation with a colleague he mentioned that he was also studying but a Cert III in Information Technology and suggested that I transfer as it was more suited to the work we were doing. I transferred immediately and later with only 3 subjects to go fell pregnant with my first child and my studies were put on hold.

Years later, and another child born and off to school, I heard about a course that was being run through work in conjunction with TAFE that would see me obtain dual Diplomas in IT & Business. I signed up for the 2^nd wave and less than 6 months later I graduated.

Changes to my work now saw me using WYSIWYG programs to update the department’s Intranet site and I realised the studying bug was taking hold again. I found this great course that would allow me to study from home, over the internet, about the internet, what could be better.

So here we are with only one degree left to get you to my topic of choice. All this has been leading you along the garden path to an oasis that is my mind. You see I have a passion for learning and a passion for teaching what I learn to others. With 2 children and a mother’s instinct for protecting them in everything they do, my studies so far has led me to thinking about their protection when they use the internet and so my topic was born.

Introduction 09/12/2009

Hi I’m Lin and I will be your host on this journey into Web Presence and the protection of the “Self” on the Internet. So sit back, pop your reading glasses on and enjoy the ride.