a journal of a researcher

Sunday, April 03, 2005

Think before you blog

I receive regularly a bulletin about network security from my institute. This issue has an article about blogging. The article mentioned several cases about people get trouble because of what appeared in their blog. Here is one story:

Michael Hanscom is a contractor who was working at a Microsoft office when he saw several Apple computers being unloaded. Amused that Microsoft was buying computers from a long-time rival, he took a picture and posted it on his “blog.” According to an article telling his story in Wired Magazine, he was terminated for his online content within a week.

It seems likely that what got Hanscom into trouble was his commentary on the photo. In his description, he provided details about the layout of the building he worked in and what kinds of work were going on there, a breach of Microsoft’s confidentiality policies.

The article reminds people how fast the Internet can spread information and how many millions of people can read your blog if your blog is linked by others. It is true from my experiences from my blog. I got query on my paper days after I posted it on my blog. It is a terrible speed that I was not prepared. Consequently, I broke the link and let the paper rest a while. But if you want to be visible on Internet, blogging is now more efficient than homepage. People like to read the dynamic information on blogs. Quote from the article:

Before you blog, be aware that you may have more readers that you think. Be ware of how your employer may react to criticism or even seemingly good-natured jokes. And never assume that a publicly posted Weblog entry won’t be read by employers or coworkers.

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