The paper noted “Even if the organizational and institutional government barriers to Web 2.0 could be overcome, there are legitimate concerns over making Government 2.0 a national security instrument. The most widely voiced concern is information assurance– knowing that the data are precise and reliable. Rumors, perfidy, or inaccurate information can be dispersed at least as fast as facts.” Now here is a practical example of exactly the kind of problem we are talking about. A recent press release from the FBI warned.
According to the Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3), there has been an increase in the number of hijacked social networking accounts reported to www.ic3.gov. One of the more popular scams involves online criminals planting malicious software and code onto to victim computers. It starts by someone opening a spam e-mail, sometimes from another hijacked friend’s account. When opened, the spam allows the cyber intruders to steal passwords for any account on the computer, including social networking sites. The thieves then change the user’s passwords and eventually send out distress messages claiming they are in some sort of legal or medical peril and requesting money from their social networking contacts.
Its not hard to imagine malicious actors mimicking government social networking tools and creating some serious confusion and disruption. Its something to think about.
