THE web really came of age this year. And like everyone reaching that phase of life, it was obsessed with itself 鈥� or rather it facilitated an unprecedented airing of individual obsessions.
Take . In July, just seven months after its launch, YouTube users were posting 65,000 new videos and viewing 100 million clips per day. Over 30 million people watched 鈥淓volution of Dance鈥�, a clip uploaded by someone who filmed himself doing a range of dance moves. Other users uploaded everything from animal tricks to teenagers wielding pretend lightsabers. In October, Google bought YouTube for a cool $1.65 billion.
The other huge phenomenon was , which lets users post and share personal information. Particularly popular with teenagers, it became the most visited address for US users in July, receiving more hits in a one-week period than even Google. By August it had registered its 100-millionth account.
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But as more people post their most intimate details on such social networking websites, many worry that the data could be a gold mine not only for cybercriminals and internet predators, but also for employers and governments. Some employers, for instance, search such websites and blogs before hiring. Others check what their employees are writing online about the company in their spare time. And the Pentagon has started funding research into harvesting the information people post about themselves. It seems the only way to be sure of your privacy may be to go offline altogether.
