Facebook Inches Closer to 1 Billion Active Users
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — Facebook announced Monday that it now has 901 million monthly active users.The news comes as the company prepares its initial public offering, which is expected in May.Facebook also said it had $205 million i…
Facebook to Buy $550M in Patents from Microsoft
Peter Foley/Bloomberg via Getty Images(LOS ANGELES) — Facebook is purchasing $550 million in patents from Microsoft, the companies announced Monday in a joint press release. The patents to be transferred were part of a larger acquisition Microsoft mad…
Can Social Media Get More Pot Users to Admit They’re Lighting Up?
LOIC VENANCE/AFP/Getty Images(SAN FRANCSICO) — The number of young adults who smoke both tobacco and marijuana may actually be higher than some recent surveys have suggested, according to a new study.Researchers from the University of California, San …
Marine Faces ‘Other Than Honorable’ Discharge Over Anti-Obama Facebook Comment
Hemera/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — A Camp Pendleton Marine who criticized President Obama on Facebook is facing an “other than honorable discharge,” a move his lawyer said is an infringement on the tea party supporter’s right to free speech. A federal judg…
Maryland Bill Bans Employers from Asking for Facebook Passwords
LOIC VENANCE/AFP/Getty Images(NEW YORK) — If you’re worried about an employer or potential employer asking for your Facebook or Twitter password, you might just want to move to Maryland. The state’s general assembly has become the fi…
Instagram Users Alarmed by Facebook Purchase
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images(PALO ALTO, Calif.) — When 12-year-old Catherine Moorhead found out about Facebook’s acquisition of Instagram she immediately texted her dad. “It ruins the purpose of Instagram! OMGosh!!!!” she typed on her iPhone. Moorh…
Washington Man on the Run from Cops Posts Facebook Updates
Medioimages/Photodisc/Thinkstock(PORT ANGELES, Wash.) — Travis A. Nicolaysen is on the run from police, but he’s still posting periodic updates on his Facebook page, and has even changed his status from “in a relationship” to “…
Facebook Buys Photo-Sharing Company Instagram
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images(PALO ALTO, Calif.) — Facebook has agreed to acquire the popular online photo sharing company Instagram, Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced Monday.Zuckerberg did not disclose the purchase amount, but accordi…
Facebook Chooses Nasdaq to List Its Shares
Peter Foley/Bloomberg via Getty Images(NEW YORK) — As it readies for its initial public offering, Facebook has reportedly chosen a stock exchange to list its shares.Citing people familiar with the matter, the Wall Street Journal says the social media …
Facebook Privacy: Dems Wield Employer Restrictions Against GOP
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — A Democratic U.S. Senate candidate in Arizona is campaigning to stop bosses from being able to demand their employees’ Facebook passwords, a week after House Democrats included a privacy provision in a …
Google Reigns as Most Popular Tech Brand, Poll Finds
JOHANNES EISELE/AFP/Getty Images(NEW YORK) — In the high-flying world of iconic technology brands, two — Google and Apple — tower at remarkable levels of public popularity in a new ABC News/Washington Post poll. But add in strength of sentimen…
Tyler Perry Says He Is a Recent Victim of Racial Profiling
Jason Merritt/Getty Images(ATLANTA) — Tyler Perry says he was unjustly interrogated by Atlanta police recently in what he believes to be a case of racial profiling.In a lengthy post on his Facebook page, Perry recalls making an illegal turn after leav…
Michigan Teacher Disciplined for Not Giving Boss Facebook Access?
Courtesy Kimberly Hester(CASSAPOLIS, Mich.) — When Kimberly Hester of Cass County, Mich. posted with permission a photo a coworker sent her on Facebook, she didn’t think it would offend the public school where she taught, or lead the superintendent to…
Facebook Taking Proactive Stance Against Suicides
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images(NEW YORK) — In the wake of the suicide of a 31-year-old Taiwanese woman who told friends on Facebook she was planning to kill herself, Facebook’s managers tell ABC News they have plans to work with other leading websites t…
Demanding Facebook Passwords May Break Law, Say Senators
Peter Foley/Bloomberg via Getty Images(NEW YORK) — It’s become standard practice for employers and schools to peruse potential applicants’ Facebook profiles. But in some cases, they are going even further: Some have demanded applicants hand over their…
U.S. Senators Ask Justice Department to Investigate Employers Who Request Facebook Passwords
Comstock/Thinkstock(NEW YORK) — Two U.S. senators are asking the U.S. Justice Department to determine whether employers who request the Facebook login information of potential employees are violating federal law, Bloomberg News reports.Sen. Charles Sc…
Facebook Discourages Employers to Ask for Job Applicants’ Passwords
Peter Foley/Bloomberg via Getty Images(NEW YORK) — Facebook Chief Privacy Officer Erin Egan issued a statement on the social networking’s privacy policy on Friday, discouraging employers from asking job applicants to reveal their passwords. “If you ar…
Puppy Mill Ads Banned from Facebook Marketplace
Peter Foley/Bloomberg via Getty Images(NEW YORK) — These days, that “doggie in the window,” to quote the song, is just as likely to be wagging its tail from a window in your computer screen. Estimates are that up to half of puppy purchases are now mad…
New Facebook App Lets Voters ‘Cosponsor’ Bills in Congress
Peter Foley/Bloomberg via Getty Images(WASHINGTON) — House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., has launched a new app on Facebook called Citizen CoSponsor, designed to connect voters with bills making their way through Capitol Hill.The new platform al…
Study Links Narcissism and Facebook Activity
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images(MACOMB, Ill.) — For the average narcissist, Facebook is a tool that may promote anti-social behavior.Facebook “offers a gateway for hundreds of shallow relationships and emotionally detached communication,” acc…