CNET News is reporting on the interesting, behind-the-scenes details involved in the capture of the “MySpace Fugitive” inside a Philadelphia public library.

From the CNET report –

Darren Bates’ capture last week as he was updating his MySpace page at the Philadelphia main library has been widely reported. But exactly how were U.S. Marshals able to capture the man wanted in Georgia and Massachusetts?

Bates, 35, was arrested Thursday morning at the main branch of the Philadelphia public library. He had been on the run since escaping from the Hancock County Jail in Georgia in June while being held on charges of auto theft. Bates is also a suspect in the beating of an 88-year-old Georgia woman in her home. And he was also wanted on sexual assault charges in New Bedford, Mass.

“We received information from officers in Massachusetts that he (Bates) had a continuing pattern of going to the library at a certain time to log in to his MySpace page,” said John Patrignani, supervisory deputy of the U.S. Marshals Service Violent Crimes Fugitive Task Force.

Patrignani said his team was given that leading information from Deputy U.S. Marshal Robert Charette, who was tracking Bates.

“We were able to work in conjunction with MySpace to determine that he was utilizing a city of Philadelphia computer to log into his MySpace account. After gathering that info, I was able to work with the city of Philadelphia to determine what library branch computer he was using,” said Charette.

Charette was able to determine where and when Bates was logging on to MySpace.com. Plain clothes officers were then placed in that location and waited for Bates’ next visit to the library.

Source: Behind the ‘MySpace fugitive’ capture

In yet another strange story of social networks and video sharing, The Associated Press is reporting that Norwegian police investigated, tracked and then fined a young motorist, who filmed his own high-speed driving and then posted the video on YouTube.

Police took up pursuit in cyberspace after a young Norwegian posted on the Internet video of his wild car driving. Following an electronic trail that he left online, police caught him and slapped him with real-life fine $1,300.

The Norwegian, identified only as a man in his early 20s, posted the video called “Driving in Norway” on Google Inc.’s popular video-sharing site YouTube. The recording showed the car’s speedometer hitting up to 150 miles — 240 kilometers — per hour on a public highway near Oslo.

“We’re touching 240,” a voice could be heard saying. “We know it will do it. This is a little nice.”

The video was removed from the Web site after it made national news in Norway last week.

Police said they could prove only that the man had driven an average of 86 miles per hour and based the fine, which the motorist accepted, on that speed. Norway’s speed limit is as high as 62 miles per hour, though lower on most roads.

“It is disturbing that young people test high speeds on highways like that, and then, on top of it, use the Net to boast about the misdeed afterward,” said Morten Hassel of the district police’s traffic unit.

Source: Yahoo! News

A recent study by the Digital Future Project found that nearly half of Americans view their online social ties as important as real-world contacts.

This percentage is likely to increase as more and more people communicate and socialize through online communities and social networks like MySpace, Facebook and LinkedIn.

From CNET News -

For many people, membership in virtual communities can be just as important as real-world social ties, according to a new study.

An estimated 43 percent of Americans who belong to online communities say they feel just as strongly about their virtual worlds as their real-world counterparts, according to the USC Annenberg Digital Future Project, which released Wednesday its sixth annual report examining the Web’s impact on society.

The findings seem to be in accordance with the ease of meeting new friends online. According to people polled by researchers at the Center for the Digital Future at the USC Annenberg School, they met an average of 1.6 new friends per year in real-world settings after originally meeting online. Those surveyed also made an average of 4.65 friends who remained virtual pals only.

In addition, more than 40 percent of Internet users said that the Web helps them stay in touch with more friends and family.

Jeffrey Cole, director of the USC Annenberg School Center for the Digital Future, said the findings are a testament to the Web’s growing importance for social purposes.

“More than a decade after the portals of the (Web) opened to the public, we are now witnessing the true emergence of the Internet as the powerful personal and social phenomenon we knew it would become,” Cole said in a statement.

Source: CNET News

An investigation by Which? magazine has uncovered more than 280 YouTube videos that show users how to pick locks and break into houses. Some experts fear that the videos, one of which has been viewed over 60,000 times, will result in an increase in burglaries.

From thisislondon.co.uk –

Householders were warned today to check their security in an alert sparked by video website YouTube.

Hundreds of videos are available on the site showing users how to pick locks, which experts fear will result in a spate of burglaries.

The films were uncovered in an investigation by Which? magazine and sparked calls for YouTube to remove them from the site.

Which? researchers found that a search for “lock-picking” on the site brings up more than 280 videos showing how different types of lock can be picked and what tools are needed.

One film, which shows how to make the tools needed to pick locks, has been viewed more than 60,000 times.

Jeff Turner of the Master Locksmiths Association said: “We wouldn’t want to cause undue worry but some of the techniques should not be in the public domain because of the risk they’ll be used by thieves.

“We see cases where people have been burgled but there’s no sign of a forced entry. The police say a key was used. The householder says that no keys are missing but even then the insurance company refuses to pay out.” Videos appear to have been put on the site by teenagers.

Some are accompanied by comments from people saying they have followed the instructions to successfully pick locks of neighbours.

Source: Anger at YouTube videos that show how to break into houses

With over 8 million registered people and growing, the LinkedIn social network is fast becoming the MySpace for business professionals.

LinkedIn members can search millions of people profiles to find former classmates and colleagues or use the social network to make new professional contacts in the business world.

Whether you are looking for lost contacts or trying to make new ones, LinkedIn is the goto social network for busy professionals who are trying to increase their number of job opportunities as well as companies and recruiters looking for potential employees.

You can visit the site @ LinkedIn.com

Central Florida News 13 is reporting on yet another MySpace controversy surrounding about 30 Texas Death Row inmates, who have personal profiles posted on the popular social network site.

From the report –

MySpace Welcomes Death Row Inmates -

At least 30 prisoners awaiting execution in Texas have pages on MySpace, which is used by millions of teenagers around the world to socialize and make friends.
Groups working with crime victims have demanded that the website, which is owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation, removes them. So far, MySpace hasn’t responded to any requests by crime victims to take the prisoners pages down.

The profiles list the inmates’ hobbies and personalities and some include blogs in which prisoners relate the daily doings on death row, their favorite music and films, or even the crimes they were convicted of.

As prisoners are not allowed internet access, the profiles are created and managed for them by friends and relatives who receive prisoners’ updates in the form of letters.

One inmate, Randy Halprin, 29, who was involved in the death of a police officer, writes: “I think I’m a pretty funny guy. I have a whacked sense of humor. I can be a big kid at heart. I’m a hopeless (and I mean HOPELESS) romatic [sic].”

Source: cfnews13.com

The Associated Press is reporting on three Georgia police officers could be disciplined over their the messages and pictures that they posted on MySpace.

From the article –

Three Richmond County deputies could be disciplined over posts and pictures in their profiles on MySpace.com.

The deputies are accused of using sheriff’s office property in photos posted on the social networking Internet site and making comments that Sheriff Ronnie Strength said are not in line with office policy.

Patrol Deputies Philip Hambrick, Jason Izquierdo and Colby Harrel will go before a disciplinary review board Thursday, according to Col. Gary Powell.

On one page, Hambrick is pictured holding his county-issued Glock pistol in front of his face “like a gangbanger,” Powell said. On another, Harrel is shown on a motorcycle next to his patrol car.

Officials were also concerned by posts made by Izquierdo. In his page, the deputy offers tips such as how to remove blood from a police uniform and a numbered guide of suggestions to the people he encounters on patrol.

“If you’d read it, you’d know it wasn’t county policy,” Powell said. “He had stuff up there like he didn’t know gold teeth were so easy to knock out - stuff we don’t need to be associated with at all.”

The three deputies are still working, pending their hearing Thursday. The office has three levels of punishment, ranging from a written warning to termination, Powell said.

Source: Ledger-Enquirer.com

Alex Dobrota has written an excellent article warning social network junkies on the professional pitfalls that can come with their posts on social network sites like MySpace, Facebook and YouTube.

From the article –

Social networking websites are the latest craze. They can be helpful tools for job hunters, but be careful: Those photos of all-night parties can backfire if a potential employer stumbles upon them.

Minutes before the unwitting job candidate walked into his office, Brad Karsh decided to go on-line to do a background check. But instead of using Google, Mr. Karsh logged on to Facebook.com, one of several so-called social networking sites that have sprung up on the web.

What he found was a shocking self-portrait of the young man he was about to interview.

“It said that his interests were ’smoking blunts with the homeys’ and ’shooting caps. . .’” — slang expressions for smoking marijuana and shooting people — recalls Mr. Karsh, the president of a small Chicago consulting company.

“I’m assuming that he was joking, but it said to me quite a bit about this man’s judgment.” And, it was enough for Mr. Karsh to disqualify the summer intern hopeful.

The article goes on to give the following tips for users of social networks, who want to practice safe networking online –

Use privacy settings: Most sites have privacy settings that allow access to your site only to those who have a password or special authorization, or to users in your network.

Use a pseudonym: If you must post questionable pictures or information on-line, never do it under your own name.

Search yourself: Don’t assume that because you haven’t posted something, somebody else hasn’t done it for you — and in a way that could come back to haunt you.

Post positive information: Turn your profile into an on-line résumé. If you choose to make your profile publicly accessible, clean up what you might have had in there, and post information about work experience, hobbies, flattering pictures and insightful comments about anything from current events to your industry.

Post selectively: If you must post a critical comment of your boss or of your company, refrain from mentioning names.

Keep in touch with old classmates: On-line connections can be instrumental for your career. Former classmates can be an easy connection — and a great resource about job opportunities.

Source: Globe andMail.com

This story is like something out of a modern crime novel. 11alive.com is reporting that Mesa, Arizona police have foiled the murder plot of a local woman, who wanted to have her ex-boyfriend’s new lover murdered after finding all of her information on his MySpace page.

From 11alive.com –

A murder plot has been foiled in Mesa, Arizona with the arrest of a 22-year-old woman. Police said the woman wanted her ex-boyfriend’s new lover murdered and that she was able to find all the information she needed about the new girlfriend through her ex-boyfriend’s MySpace web page.

Mesa police videotaped the meeting between Heather Kane and an undercover officer posing as a hit man. On the tape, the officer asked, “You don’t want him hit at all. Just her?” Kane is heard answering, “Just her.”

“Just an absolutely bizarre situation where you’ve got a lady so upset at someone she’s only known for three months that she feels like she needed him so badly she would have someone killed. A perfect stranger,” said Jerry Gissel of the Mesa Police Department.

Undercover cops met Kane at a grocery store parking lot. She provided pictures of the woman and addresses pulled from her ex’s MySpace web page. The officer asked, “Are you confident you want this done?” Kane responded, “I’m absolutely confident I want this done.”

Just before she reached for the money to pay the undercover officer, Kane seemed to get suspicious. “I’ve seen cop shows and stuff like that so from what I hear if I ask if you’re a cop and you say no, I’m good.” But Kane made the deal, according to officers, who said she had a final, fatal request.

“Basically [she] said she didn’t care how she was killed, but did want to see a picture of it afterwards,” said Kissel.

The undercover cop agreed. Kane was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder.

Source: 11alive.com

According to the Associated Press, a high school assistant principle is suing two students, after they created a MySpace people profile with her name and posted false information and obscene comments and pictures about her.

You can read the entire article on USA Today at Official sues students over MySpace page.