Facebook introduces Legacy Contacts to manage your account when you die

Facebook is giving users more control over their social networking afterlives with a “legacy contact” setting.
With this setting enabled, a designated heir can change the deceased user’s profile picture, pin a memorial letter to the top of the profile, and respond to friend requests. The legacy contact can also download an archive of photos and posts.

However, Facebook is making clear that this is not the same as handing over your password. Legacy contacts won’t be able to edit old posts, access private messages or delete the entire account. Facebook told the Wall Street Journal that it ruled out further access “for this first version,” and noted that adding more responsibilities could just hinder the grieving process.

Facebook users can set up a legacy contact through the Security section of the settings menu.

In the past, Facebook would freeze the account when it learned of the user’s death, while also adding the word “Remembering” next to the person’s name and removing any ads from the profile page. This option for “Memorialized Accounts” is still the default. Users who want to add a legacy contact can do so through Settings > Security > Legacy Contact. Friends and loved ones can also still set up a group memorial page for the deceased.

Legacy contacts are only available to U.S. users for now, with support in other countries to follow.

Why this matters: While some states have tried to come up with “digital will” laws, and the U.S. government recommends creating your own will, the best solutions will come from the online services themselves, as they can provide granular controls over account access. Facebook is hardly the first to do so—Google has offered an “Inactive Account Manager” since 2013—but having these controls on the world’s largest social network goes a long way toward helping people figure out their digital legacies.

Source: PC World

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Delta Airlines' Facebook page was hacked by someone who posted obscene photos

Screenshot from Delta's Facebook page

Delta Airlines Facebook page was apparently hacked Tuesday.

Instead of the normal stream of post about travel destinations, an obscene link was published on the page under the title, "10 Reasons Why Girls Dont Give Bl--j--s."

About an hour after the initial post, a second obscene link was posted.



Shortly after the second post, Delta removed the objectionable links.

The Airlines has since apologized on Twitter saying its Facebook page has been compromised.

In a statement to Business Insider, Delta said:

Within an hour, Delta was able to work with Facebook to remove objectionable and offensive content posted to the airline’s page, Tuesday afternoon. Delta apologizes for the unauthorized content that appeared on the site. We are investigating the source of the hack and will incorporate any key lessons to strengthen our social media security measures. No other Delta social media platforms were compromised.

The @Delta Facebook page was compromised. We sincerely apologize for the unauthorized, objectionable content that was posted.
— Delta (@Delta) February 10, 2015

Source: Business Insider

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Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg donates $75 million to San Francisco hospital

Donation could be biggest amount given by an individual to a public hospital

Never one to do things by halves, Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan are reportedly  donating $75 million to a San Francisco hospital – believed to be the largest sum given to a public hospital by an individual.

The Facebook founder and CEO is donating the money to the San Francisco General Hospital Foundation to help fund critical equipment and technology for the public hospital’s new emergency room.

In an announcement made on Facebook (of course), Zuckerberg said: “We believe everyone deserves access to high quality health care. The General is the main public hospital in San Francisco, and it is an important safety net for our community.
"More than 70 per cent of the families it serves are uninsured or underinsured. It is open to anyone who lives, works in or visits the city.”

He said Chan had completed her medical residency at the facility as a paediatrician, an experience that had "deepened our commitment to help these families".

Zuckerberg even managed to reference Facebook in his message, adding: “We are so fortunate that our work in connecting the world through Facebook has given us the ability to give back to our local community, our country and the world -- and to work to improve education, health care and internet access for everyone.”

San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee described the donation as “incredibly gracious”.

“They have made sure, in the future, there will be enough money to maintain and modernise it,” he told SF Gate. ”They want a public hospital as important as this to be at world-class standards every year.”

“This precedent-setting grant is a key piece necessary to the completion and opening of the new building in December,” Amanda Heier, the foundation’s chief executive officer added.

Source: The Independent

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