3. (Web Experiences) in What Ways Are Web Sites That Encourage User Participation Vulnerable to Abuse? How Can Administrators of Such Sites Protect Themselves and Their Users? to What Extent Do You Think That Administrators Should Interfere, and Why?

Websites that encourage user participation are vulnerable to abuse by means of several different methods.   There are a variety of different types of websites that encourage user participation. An example of these particular websites is social networking sites and e-commerce sites.

A social networking site is vulnerable to many ways of abuse, one being; a user gaining unauthorized access to another user’s profile. This could be a method of sabotaging the profile due to a personal grudge against the victim or gaining personal information about the user for the hacker’s own benefit. A way of preventing unauthorized access is by giving each user their own access procedure such as Username and password along with a security question if someone tries to gain access and fails.
Facebook is a popular social networking site which has a unique way of reducing unauthorised access. In order to see any personal details about a certain user you must ask the user for permission to view their webpage.

Another method of abuse is the publication of illicit material. This could mean abuse that is racially or sexually orientated. As users are able to write about any topic they want on the site it is possible for them to write about their opinions and not actual facts. Due to this there could be a controversy about the accuracy of information being written on the site.   This could lead to arguments and even discrimination against certain people.   To prevent this from happening social networking websites allow users to report abuse. If a user is breaching terms and conditions of use then the site owners are able to erase the user’s profile to stop them from doing so again.   Inaccurate information that could be a means of sharing an abusive opinion could lead to the site’s owners being prosecuted therefore it is important for the website to axe any discriminating abuse from the site.   It is also important that the users of the website abide by the terms and conditions. The...