Hasta La Gadget!

Dalton Caldwell, the mastermind behind App.net, took to his blog yesterday to announce that the team had reached its funding goal for the project. The App.net alpha project managed to hit its $500,000 goal with two days left to go, and has amassed over $644,000 from around 9,700 backers as of the time of writing. Payment tiers include a $50 option that allows regular users to either reserve a custom username or register their existing Twitter handles, while the $100 option is aimed at developers, providing access to various API tools as well as documentation.

App.net was created as an alternative to Twitter, with Dalton Caldwell believing that the social network was moving in the wrong direction with regards to its API access as well as monetization of users. Caldwell asserts that advertising isn’t the only business model that a social network can be funded by, with App.net created on the premise that users will pay for access to a service with real time feeds and open APIs.

The project was slow to gather momentum at first, but a burst of publicity over the past week helped push the project to its $500,000 goal. Backers of the project have paid for a year of access upfront, but the ultimate goal when the service launches is to have users pay a small fee on a monthly basis. It’s a risky strategy, as most users seem to be content with ad-based serices, but the fact the app.net has managed to reach its goal indicates that there are those out there who are willing to pay for a cleaner experience.

The project still has about a day left to go, so there’s still time to put forward your $50 and secure a username. If you don’t feel like parting with a lump sum of cash upfront, then you’ll be able to register with the service normally when the alpha test is over, but there’s no indication just yet when that will be. An iOS app has been planned for the social network, however, and Caldwell mentions that several third-party applications are already in development thanks to the available API.

Social network App.net reaches $500k funding goal is written by Ben Kersey & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

This week the FTC has settled its privacy complaint with Facebook with an agreement that the social network will obtain “express consent” before they share any information of said users outside its pre-written privacy settings. The agreement makes it so that Facebook must provide users with “clear and prominent notice” any time user information is shared. It also makes Facebook keep a “comprehensive privacy program” maintained and subject to biennial privacy audits.

This settlement is the end of a process which started in November of 2011, today’s date being the final announcement and cut-off time for Facebook to comply with said orders. Each violation of these orders will result in a penalty from the FTC for up to $16,000 apiece. The investigation itself began back in 2009 when initial complains from privacy watchdogs suggested private information was being shared by Facebook from users who had opted out of such activities.

This settlement comes just one day after the FTC’s settlement with Google which resulted in a $22.5 million dollar fine. That fine was the largest ever levied by the company for a violation of their orders. The agency’s commissioners issued a joint statement today which read in part as follows.

“We intend to monitor closely Facebook’s compliance with the order, and will not hesitate to seek civil penalties for any violations.

… A statement from Facebook about an app’s conduct may well amount to a promise that Facebook is taking steps to assure the level of privacy or security that the app provides for consumers’ information.” – FTC

Have a peek at the timeline below to see other FTC activities as of late to see how they’re taking care of business across the web in the USA here in the summer of 2012.

FTC Facebook verdict: “express consent” required is written by Chris Burns & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Take a look inside your spam folder and you’ll find a variety of phishing emails from the likes of eBay, PayPal, and Facebook. The social network has decided to take matters into its own hands, setting up an email address (phish@fb.com) that users can forward phishing emails to. Facebook will then investigate the emails, trying to determine where it came from and who sent it.

It’s a big problem for any popular commerce or social networking site on the internet, but Facebook is taking steps to try and ease the problem. Mark Hammel, a Facebook engineer, says, “We have a pretty robust team here to deal with bad actors. This will give us extra visibility into people’s e-mail inboxes, where there wasn’t a good feedback mechanism in place.”

So, what exactly does Facebook do with forwarded emails? The team takes a look at the URLs found within the emails and forwards them on to browser creators as well as search engines in an attempt to blacklist them. Once they’re added to a browser blacklist, for example, users should be warned and veered away without clicking through and inputting any sensitive information.

Trying to find the root of the problem is still Facebook’s primary goal, however. The team will send out cease-and-desist letters to any hosting companies found harboring the phishing websites, and potentially file criminal complaints if they discover who’s behind the emails. The big problem for Facebook is that phishers often move quickly, taking down and throwing up new websites in an attempt to circumvent blacklists. How effective the new email address is depends entirely on how fast the investigative team can move.

[via CNN Money]

Facebook: Forward us your phishing emails is written by Ben Kersey & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Rapid turnaround just may be the name of Facebook’s game. Just a few weeks after its SDK 3.0 for iOS reached beta, the new developer tool has surfaced in a polished version. As it’s shipping, the SDK continues to emphasize a more iOS-native experience, better API support and slicker session management. Any iOS 6 integration will still have to wait until Apple finishes its software update; Facebook is keeping a separate beta track active to serve forward-thinking developers. The social network’s regular members aren’t quite getting the same reward, however. The expanded app support is being followed just as quickly by a mobile ad beta. While Facebook is still sparing us from a full-bore marketing assault, it’s letting developers pitch their Android and iOS apps from Facebook’s mobile portals, with a quick hop to the relevant app store if the title isn’t already loaded. While there’s no estimated completion date, we have a feeling that this is one Facebook beta where most customers won’t mind a delay or two… or ten.

Filed under: Cellphones, Internet, Software

Facebook SDK 3.0 for iOS arrives in finished form, mobile ads tag along in beta originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 07 Aug 2012 19:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Facebook (SDK), (Mobile Ads)  | Email this | Comments

There are no shortages of apps and games on Facebook, and there have been gambling apps available on the social network in the past. Today marks the first time that Facebook has allowed one of its games to put real money at stake, however. The launch of Bingo Friendzy in the UK allows users to play different games to try and win cash prizes. The app was created by Gamesys, owners of one of the UK’s leading bingo websites. Any Facebook user in the UK can try the game as long as they’re over the age of 18.

The arrival of real money gambling games has been on the horizon for some time. Zynga, the studio behind popular Facebook games like FarmVille, has said that it intends to bring its own bingo and slot machine apps to the UK next year, and Facebook says that games from other companies will be making their debut in a matter of weeks.

In order to play the games, users will need to provide a working credit card instead of using Facebook’s credits. Gamesys insists, meanwhile, that it will comply with gambling regulations and provide access to self-help tools that will limit access and spending. Facebook won’t be able to offer gambling games across the entire world, however, as different laws restrict the games in certain regions. The UK seems to be ok with the idea, but social media gambling is banned in the United States.

The move is an attempt by Facebook to try and bolster revenues. The vast majority of Facebook’s income relies on advertising right now, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise to see the company exploring other avenues in an attempt to appease shareholders, who are worried that the social network relies too heavily on ads.

[via The Telegraph]

Facebook launches real money gambling app in UK is written by Ben Kersey & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.