When 'Friends' and Lives Collide on Social Networks

...the walls that separate parts of a person's life can be knocked down in the emerging world of online social networking. Everyone you know — high school and college classmates, business associates, someone you met in a nightclub — and even total strangers can become a "friend" on your personal Web page and gain access to all sorts of information and discussions about you.

Online networking sites — used by 86.6 million people in the USA last month, according to Nielsen Online — have long been the focus of concern about teenagers posting too much information about their lives...But as a growing number of adults are learning, giving too much information online isn't just a problem for teenagers.

On MySpace, Facebook and other social networks, a user can join another member's "friends" list simply by asking. Many people allow new friends without a second thought. Social networking sites vary in what kinds of privileges come with friendship, but for the most part, it opens virtual doors to all sorts of personal information. [...]

Online "friends" can "look at your pictures," she says. "They can look at your blog. They can see what's going on and you have no control over that information anymore because you've accepted them as friends."

In a few weeks, Facebook users will be able separate their "friends" into social circles and decide which kinds of information about the user they receive, says Chris Kelly, chief privacy officer.

"We don't think all friends should be equal," Kelly says. "Our goal is to accurately reflect the social infrastructure."

MySpace plans to make similar changes in a few months.