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LinkedIn: The Creepiest Social Network

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Re: LinkedIn: The Creepiest Social Network

#2
I've had the same experience. Register on LinkedIn, log in, "Would you like to connect with ?" We hadn't spoken in years or connected on any other site, I could only come up with one thing: she emailed me once. I bet she gave LinkedIn her email credentials to find connections. I hate that feature.

Re: LinkedIn: The Creepiest Social Network

#3

I've had the same experience. Register on LinkedIn, log in, "Would you like to connect with ?" We hadn't spoken in years or connected on any other site, I could only come up with one thing: she emailed me once. I bet she gave LinkedIn her email credentials to find connections. I hate that feature.

I always had the same hypothesis as to how they were able to find those random connections. Which is why I refuse to give any social network access to my email contact list. For my own privacy and for my contacts privacy.

Re: LinkedIn: The Creepiest Social Network

#4
post #3

I've had the same experience. Register on LinkedIn, log in, "Would you like to connect with ?" We hadn't spoken in years or connected on any other site, I could only come up with one thing: she emailed me once. I bet she gave LinkedIn her email credentials to find connections. I hate that feature.

I always had the same hypothesis as to how they were able to find those random connections. Which is why I refuse to give any social network access to my email contact list. For my own privacy and for my contacts privacy.

Yeah this really highlighted to me the inherent danger of social computing - I can be as private as I want, but I'm only as private as my real life friends are about me. I don't have to upload my email contacts for third parties to find out all sorts of interesting things about who I talk to.

Re: LinkedIn: The Creepiest Social Network

#5
I always assumed the suggestions were from other people importing their Twitters and email contacts. So if person A emails me and then imports their emails, Linkedin can suggest to both of us that we might know each other, increasing the chance of creating a connection (and creepy-ness factor for me).

Re: LinkedIn: The Creepiest Social Network

#7
No creepier than other social networking sites.

I find it interesting that it has automated what some folks have done on their own for years. There was a woman at Netapp who managed these sorts of potential and known relationships in her head about the folks working at a couple of big Netapp customers.

I guess what I find amusing is that it is was my experience when introducing myself to someone new at a social event and saying "I work at " or "Yeah, I grew up in Las Vegas" or something along those lines I would often get "Really, I knew this person who worked/lived there, did you know them?" as social banter. It didn't creep me out then either, but I'm sure that for some folks it does.

Re: LinkedIn: The Creepiest Social Network

#9

I've had the same experience. Register on LinkedIn, log in, "Would you like to connect with ?" We hadn't spoken in years or connected on any other site, I could only come up with one thing: she emailed me once. I bet she gave LinkedIn her email credentials to find connections. I hate that feature.

I was thinking the exact same thing. It's funny that he wrote that entire post and never raised the possibility of OTHER people sharing their contacts with LinkedIn, and that may explain at least some of the "people you may know."

Re: LinkedIn: The Creepiest Social Network

#10
post #5

I always assumed the suggestions were from other people importing their Twitters and email contacts. So if person A emails me and then imports their emails, Linkedin can suggest to both of us that we might know each other, increasing the chance of creating a connection (and creepy-ness factor for me).

Twitter is more interesting in this case because it allows unilateral following. So even if you broke it off with a now ex-girlfriend if they were still (or even only now) following you on Twitter that graph might make indicate the awareness.
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