Facebook announced at a press conference held at its Palo Alto headquarters this evening that it is launching a free location check-in service called Places. Places will first be offered as part of Facebook's iPhone, BlackBerry, and Android OS smartphone apps, and will start becoming available in the U.S.-only beginning August 19. Places lets you click on a new check-in button that queries your smartphone's GPS utility to show your location, and then lets you post an update and tag other friends who are with you. Check-in lets you find out "who's here" in addition to viewing comments from friends who have been to your current location before.
Facebook representatives say they are not trying to put other location services, such as Yelp and Foursquare out of business. Yelp's Eric Singley, on hand for the press conference, agreed, and said Places will enhance its product, and Yelp will be using the Places application programming interface (API) to partner with Facebook.
I think Places will be a terrific addition to Facebook mobile. Most examples of how check-in services work focus on indoor venues such as bars and restaurants, but Places will be even more handy at outdoor venues such as ski slopes and concerts. Image © Facebook
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Please be advised that I received the followign message from a member of the IT Department at a United States Air Force Base today. Is it true???
It is requested that this document is distributed as widely as possible,
on the proviso that it is advising and not instructing personnel to disable the application.
FACEBOOK PLACES I CHECKED INTO APPLICATION
1. Introduction. Facebook have recently launched a new application called “PLACES I CHECKED INTO”, which is automatically active on all Facebook accounts until disabled. This application utilizes the IP address, to identify where the user logs onto their Facebook profile from. The application then posts the status on the wall of the user’s profile, as shown below in Figure 1. A more detailed description, including a map of the location, as at Figure 2, is then provided by clicking on the location (highlighted within the red circle).
Figure 1 – Wall Post.
Figure 2 – Application Open from Wall Post.
2. Aim. The aim of this document is to give guidance to Military users who wish to know how to disable the Facebook “PLACES I CHECKED INTO” application.
3. Concerns. The main concern relating to the use of the application is that it may inadvertently compromise the locality of a military user. Of significant note, users on operations or in Northern Ireland are potentially putting themselves at risk by drawing attention to their exact whereabouts.
4. Social network sites already provide an extensive open source intelligence gathering tool. This application is almost creating a one stop shop targeting pack, which could potentially be used to target, military personnel, family and friends.
5. Summary. Any users of Facebook therefore, should be made aware of the increased risk of using social networking sites and the potential risks associated with leaving the ‘PLACES I CHECKED INTO’ applications active.
6. It is requested that this document is distributed as widely as possible, on the proviso that it is advising and not instructing personnel to disable the application.