Facebook New Security Feature Launched Yesterday

Two new security features on Facebook are welcome signs that the company takes privacy and security seriously, but for me they raise as many questions as they answer.
The main change is the addition of optional one-time passwords (OTP). If you're on a computer you don't trust, such as a kiosk or in a cafe, and you don't want to enter your password, you can request a one-time password (by texting "otp" to 32665 from a US mobile phone). The OTP is returned as a reply text message. Then user can then log in from any computer and the OTP is good for 20 minutes.
On the one hand I am impressed and tempted to ask why Facebook is able to do this when none of the major US banks can. On the other hand, there's a good reason why US banks don't implement one-time passwords exactly this way: If you were to lose your phone, even for a brief period, your account could be compromised.
Here's how it works: You go away, maybe to the bathroom, and leave your phone behind. Someone who knows your e-mail address picks up your phone and requests a one-time password. They can then log into your Facebook account from any computer for 20 minutes.
The theory behind one-time passwords in most cases is to add a second factor to authentication, not to replace the one factor with a different single factor. In security terminology the OTP adds something you have (your phone) to something you know (your password). Facebook is doing this to save you from having to enter your password on a strange computer, not to strengthen authentication.
They could mitigate the problem of lost phones by always issuing a challenge question, what they call your Security Question on the Account Settings page. Facebook hasn't yet responded to my questions about it. I'd test it myself, but one-time passwords are being rolled out gradually and haven't reached my account yet. (I'll update this entry if they reply.)
The other thing about the OTP setup in Facebook is that after you do it, you're set up by default to receive numerous other notifications via text message. Here's a notification for Facebook management: When users adds their mobile numbers on an account-recovery page, it's sleazy and self-serving to assume they want to be texted about non-security issues." Hear, hear, Rob.
The other major new feature is that you can disconnect other open Facebook sessions by going into your Account Settings-Account Security page. There you will find a list of sessions, potentially opened weeks ago on computers far, far away. It's possible for someone else on the computer to take control of that session and, thereby, your Facebook account.

Now you have the option of disconnecting those sessions, but I'm disturbed to find that they don't disconnect automatically after some fairly brief period. Being able to disconnect sessions is great, but mostly this change exposes the other poo security decisions by Facebook.
The last change Facebook announced is that they will regularly remind users, when they log in, to update their security information, such as their security question, mobile phone number (for identification in case the password is lost) and e-mail addresses (for the same reason).
But respecting the first two, more interesting changes, I have to agree with Rob Pegoraro again when he says that "...they suffer the generic defect of all optional security features: The people most likely to take these extra steps are often the ones less likely to get hoodwinked by a hack."

Webmaster Tools - Links to your site updated

The "Links to your site" feature in Webmaster Tools is now updated to show you which domains link the most to your site, in addition to other improvements. On the overview page you'll notice that there are three main sections: the domains linking most to your site, the pages on your site with the most links, and a sampling of the anchor text external sites are using when they link to your site.Who links the mostClicking the “More >>” link under the “Who links the most” section will take you to a new view that shows a listing of all the domains that link to your site. Each domain in the list can be expanded to display a sample of pages from your site which are linked to by that domain.The "More >>" link under each specific domain lists all the pages linked to by that domain. At the top of the page there is a total count of links from that domain and a total count of your site's pages linked to from that domain.Your most linked content If you drill into the “Your most linked content” view from the overview page, you’ll see a listing of all your site’s most important linked pages. There's also a link count for each page as well as a count of domains linking to that page. Clicking any of the pages listed will expand the view to show you examples of the leading domains linking to that page and the number of links to the given page from each domain listed. The data used for link counts and throughout the "Links to your site" feature is more comprehensive now, including links redirected using 301 or 302 HTTP redirects.Each page listed in the "All linked pages" view has an associated "More >>" link which displays all the domains linking to that specific page on your site.Each domain listed leads to a report of all the pages from that domain linking to your specific page.We hope the updated “Links to your site” feature in Webmaster Tools will help you better understand where the links to your site are coming from and improve your ability to track changes to your site’s link profile.

Facebook Marketing

Why Facebook Marketing??

First and foremost, Facebook, like other social media, is a phenomenal way to become more visible and successful by making a face for yourself online.

Facebook is now the largest social network on the planet with over 500 million active users, long ago surpassing former social networking giant MySpace—and it continues to grow at 1 million new users a week.

Considering those numbers, you have to ask yourself—do you think your target market might be there? And if you’re not there, what might you be missing?

Facebook pages are great for a number of reasons:

Pages allow you to keep your personal info separate from your business info.
Pages are public, which means that they are visible to the search engines and are not behind a login like personal profiles are (so be sure to use keywords pertaining to your business in the title of your page if you can—Facebook is ranked very highly in the search engines and you can benefit from this!).
Pages are great for communicating with your supporters (formerly “fans”) and listening to, answering and updating them.
Pages help spread viral awareness of your brand and business—a key aspect is that when people who “like” your page interact with it, this activity shows up in the news feeds of all of their friends.
I Have a Page. Now What?

Ok, now that you know why they’re important, how do you use a page successfully?

Here are just a few ways:

Keep your page updated with content, such as pulling in your blog posts and sharing links.
Ask open-ended questions and engage your supporters whenever possible.
Treat your supporters to “exclusive” offers and content that not everyone else gets. Make them understand that they’re getting something special by supporting your business or brand on your page.
Add the Static FBML application to create a simple form on your page for people to sign up for your newsletter, free report or seminar.
Let your friends know about your page by clicking the link that says “Suggest to Friends” under your picture.