Step away from Facebook, people.

Ok, you don’t have to turn it off (breathe), but you do have to be careful. There are reports online that there is a worm attacking Facebook, MySpace and other social networks.

According to one report:

“The latest version arrives as an invitation from a user’s friend or contact, inviting them to click on a link and view a video at a fake YouTube site and install an Adobe flash plug-in. Instead, the worm installs a trojan horse program, giving control of the infected user’s computer.”

Be wary of any unsolicited messages containing links, even from your “friends.”

Don’t say we didn’t warn you.

Seriously, who gives out their number anymore?

I remember having a drunken bonding moment with a really cool guy in college a few years ago, and he asked for my number. I asked for his screen name instead. I mean, IM-ing someone is so much more casual, and so much less stressful. You don’t have to feel your heart thumping through your chest as the phone rings. Is he going to answer? Is it going to go to voicemail? Is he blocking me? What do I say if he picks up?

With IM, you can see if he’s away or idle, and choose your own adventure from there. You can leave a casual “Just wanted to say I had a great time last night” IM, rather than starting a phone call with the same line and then struggling to make small talk. Likewise, you can make small talk behind the shield of the IM window, where he can’t hear your voice crack, and where you can copy and paste the whole convo to all of your girlfriends and get advice while you try to weed out his intentions.

And then came Facebook. The social network has made quite the mark on the dating scene. There’s the poke, which can be viewed as casual, flirty, or creepy. There’s the “it’s complicated” label for the relationship you’re in (finally- you can be open about having a f*ck buddy without warding off the rest of the male population!); and of course, there’s the wall post, which makes the casual IM seem like the awkward phone call of yesteryear. Read More »