Facebook Catching Criminals?

Have you ever logged onto Facebook in a public location or at someone else's house and forgot to log off? I'm sure most of us have at one point. Recently a burglar did just this at the house he broke into, and it lead to his timely arrest. Facebook as we know it is mainly used for posting information and pictures about yourself that you wish to share with the world (or at least with your own group of friends). At the same time, anyone that you are "friends" with has access to all of this information.

For some reason, some users on Facebook have issues with privacy. True, there is a lot of information given out through Facebook, but it is YOU who is giving out the information. If one doesn't like a picture of themselves that someone else posted, they have full liability to tell them to remove that picture. The problem here seems to be that these law violators are posting the information that leads to their arrest. Another example addresses a real live fight, where the aftermath was recorded and traced by authorities on Facebook. Very recently, when a Kansas basketball player wrote an update referencing his school's football team negatively, a fight arose, causing that same basketball player to dislocate his thumb. Of course, his status was then updated to report his injury, which would have probably not been known by authorities otherwise.

As good as Facebook is, online social networking holds as many negative points as it does positive points. Sure, I have personally met, or become closer with, a handful of people with the help of Facebook, but it doesn't control my life. For me, Facebook is a tool for me to arrange plans with friends, instant message, and share pictures (personal or portfolio). For some people, though, it is an addiction, or in a way has become their social life. This addiction most likely explains the stupidity behind the aforementioned robber that just HAD to log into Facebook while robbing that house. I have a Facebook account and use it often, but it is surely no replacement for real life occurrences. It's all a matter of moderation.

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