ReputationDefender Featured in the TorontoSun

Source: TorontoSun.com

Becoming web dead

Web content that sullies your reputation can be cleansed

By VIVIAN SONG, NATIONAL BUREAU


It was 3 a.m. when Lori Paris sleepwalked her way into work, ready to anchor the overnight shift at her local radio station.

As always, she went to log into her Facebook account looking for the company of virtual friends at a lonely hour, but was blocked, greeted instead by hostile "error" messages flashing on her screen.

"Then a co-worker who works down the hall ran down asking, 'What do you need help with?" Paris recalled.

While the real McCoy was sitting at her desk in a Toronto radio station, an imposter from England had hijacked Paris' Facebook profile and was pleading for help in her status message.

"Apparently, I was stuck in London and needed $500 to get home," Paris said.

"I had been robbed at gunpoint and had no money to get back."

For the next few days, Paris was fielding frantic phone calls from friends and family who were ready to fork over money.

"I didn't want anyone to get ripped off," she said.

Unlike stories of feckless users who post personal information on public profiles, Paris had restricted access to friends she approved.

She was likely the victim of a worldwide phishing attack earlier this year that used the same ruse of being stuck in London and struck a "small number of users," said Debbie Frost, a Facebook spokesman.

"We're reminding users to be very suspicious of anyone, even friends, who ask you over the Internet to send money."

But users overestimate the security levels of social networking sites and forget that they're for-profit businesses with crude security systems -- not banks, said Avner Levin, the director of the Privacy Institute at Toronto's Ryerson University.

Meanwhile, though identity thieves are creating multiple doppelgangers of people online, an opposite phenomenon has also been surfacing -- scrubbing oneself offline, or web dead.

Companies such as ReputationDefender will scour the Internet and remove unflattering material that could sully their client's online reputation. For example, when a grad student discovered a picture of her half-naked body posted by a bitter ex-boyfriend, she enlisted ReputationDefender's help. The company's strategy is surprisingly simple: They ask the site host politely. They're not a legal team, says founder Michael Fertik, but they've seldom had to resort to legal methods in the 10,000 removal requests made so far.

Not everything is erasable. Official records like court documents and news clippings are immune.

"People are alive to the fact that the web is not their enemy," Fertik said from California. "It's a fact of life and people want to have as much control over it as possible."

But what if you don't have an online profile or e-mail account, as is common among the computer illiterate? Don't be quick to congratulate yourself on preserving anonymity, experts say.

Because unbeknownst to you, you could be identified in a nephew's Facebook family picture.

"The world is changing with social media," Levin said. "People will have to play by a new set of rules. Very little is sacred or within our control anymore."

But that shouldn't mean we get little say in how our information is used, say experts at the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic in Ottawa.

"The big criticism of social networking sites is that the terms of use aren't clear," said acting director and lawyer David Fewer. "The benefits are clear, but the cost of engaging in the service is unknown."

Lawyers at the clinic filed a complaint against the networking giant, alleging Facebook's policies violate Canadian privacy law by failing to identify how it collects and uses personal information, and what they do with personal information after users deactivate their accounts.

The policy must be in plain language and refrain from legalese, Fewer said, and clearly spell out privacy settings to its client base, which is made up predominantly of young users.

"The claim that privacy policies take care of everything is an incredible abdication of responsibility," Fewer said.

Facebook officials, meanwhile, maintain the complaint is flawed because it overlooks the obvious: That the data is willingly shared by users.

"At Facebook, we ... believe (the controls) are entirely consistent with both the spirit and requirements of Canadian privacy law," Frost said.

But are we asking too much of a service that, at the end of the day, is a for-profit business and not a government institution?

"We need to be reminded that Facebook is a business and has to make money," Levin said. "There's a strong sense of entitlement to privacy in social media. It's part of a larger sense of entitlement from getting things for free on the Internet like movies, music and software."

When you sign up for a free service, you "choose" to volunteer personal information that's then shared with third-party advertisers -- there has to be an exchange, Levin said.

"People have unrealistic expectations that you can get the best of both worlds. In the real world, something has to give."

vivian.song@sunmedia.ca

Don't Let the Web Kill What You Love

By Michael Fertik

“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it.”

Warren Buffett said that, before the invention of the Internet.

Now, in the information age, the statement has never been more truthful. That is why I started a business, ReputationDefender, that is all about protecting reputations.Your good name, and the reputations of your family, business, and everything you love, is valuable.

So, when your neighbor, a customer, or a love interest plugs your name into a search engine, what will they find?Anyone can come along and slam you online and if that happens, search results for your name might be dominated by negative, incomplete, or even false information.

A hostile online comment might represent the uncommon experience of a dissatisfied customer or disgruntled neighbor, but due to the structure of search engines, that single opinion can be greatly amplified and made to look like a universal point of view.

You might fall victim to the sniping of an anonymous blogger or even a competitor posing as an angry customer.It’s not only easy to publish half-truths, innuendo, and falsehoods on the Internet, it’s also easy to make them stick. Many people who publish negative web content know how to make it maximally destructive.

Lies, rumors, or memes take flight easily, getting repeated, added to, and generally magnified. Even though some of these narratives are discovered to be false, very few of them get debunked as loudly as they are broadcasted in the first place. As a result, false content often becomes more visible on the web than, say, well-researched articles from reputable news sources.

It might seem illogical that bogus speculation can end up dominating searches for you, but that’s how a rumor mill works.A great strength of the Internet is that it gives everyone a voice.

That’s also one of its dangers: it can endow fraudsters and idle speculators with the appearance of authority. The danger is real. This does not mean you should stop using the Internet.

It means that you must proactively establish your accurate and positive presence on the web before there is a problem. You need to maximize your control over what people find about you, before someone else does it for you.There are options. Companies have developed software solutions for online reputation protection.

ReputationDefender, which is now a partner with TheStreet.com network, is my company, and we do just that.

Michael Fertik is the Founder and CEO of ReputationDefender, the online reputation management and privacy company.

Sue Scheff: Google - What is it saying about You?

By portfolio.com

Forget your references, your ­résumé, and the degree on your wall. “Whatever’s in the top 10 ­results of a search for your name on Google—that’s your [professional] image,” says Chris Martin, founder of the small internet company Reputation Hawk, which is one of several outfits that focus on keeping that top 10 clean for their clients.

For victims of cyber-slurs, cleanup doesn’t necessarily mean removing bad press. Companies like eVisibility, Converseon, and 360i concentrate on generating ­positive content—but not too much at one time. If Google detects a ­sudden flood of suspicious Web postings, it will assign them low trust scores, preventing them from rising to the top of search results.

Nino Kader, CEO of International Reputation Management, uses a positive-content approach, calling its strategy a mix of “old-school PR and high tech.” The firm builds social profiles (on MySpace or Facebook) for clients and promotes them to blogs; it also drafts news releases and solicits coverage from traditional press outlets. Scrubbers generally work on retainer and charge anywhere from $500 to $10,000 a month.

A handful of scrubbers do try to actually remove negative content, using coercion, compromise, and occasionally cash. A first step is to contact the website and ask that the harmful post be removed. “For us to pay the site for removal is very uncommon, but less than 1 percent of the time, we have to do it,” says ReputationDefender CEO Michael Fertik, whose company charges a monthly fee and $30 for each item they persuade a website to remove. If a site refuses to erase an offending post, the next step is to negotiate a compromise. Ask the site administrator to substitute a screenshot for the actual text of the harmful post (a screenshot is an image, so the words no longer register as text to Google and won’t come up in a search).

When it comes to your online image, these companies argue that no one can afford to shrug off a slight. As Fertik says, “The people who are reading stuff about you on the internet don’t have to believe what they read about you beyond a reasonable doubt.” They just have to believe it enough to not hire you

Sue Scheff: ReputationDefender Continues to Grow - As the Internet Expands!

As a victim and survivor of the wicked web (at times), I was vindicated at a jury trial for damages when I was awarded over $11M for the defamatory comments posted about me.

I credit my attorney, David Pollack, for successfully proving to the jury how I was damaged (defamed) online.

What happens after the jury goes home and I have my $11.3M judgment? Well, you get a lot of media attention, new stalkers arrive, you become a Limited Public Figure (something I was not prior this major victory), and before you know it - you are the face of Internet Defamation Survivor. However what it doesn't do is erase the ugliness the perpetrator did to you online.

For that, I sought out the services of Reputation Defender. O-kay, so you can't literally erase all the unflattering online statements - but you can start filling the web with who you really are - and what you believe in.

I used ReputationDefender MyEdge - which is a priceless service for anyone that owns a business or has a reputation to protect. You can have a 20 year old reputable company literally destroyed within 20 minutes with a few keystrokes!

Here are some articles to help you find out more about how Reputation Defender can help you.

As a parent advocate, I always recommend MyChild - which helps parents monitor where their child's name is being used! Remember, kids think that applying for colleges and filling out employment applications is far away - in a child's mind, 2-4 years seems like a lifetime - but in reality - what goes online today - can haunt them tomorrow and years from tomorrow.

My Good Name Protector ReputationDefender Raises $2.6M In 1st Round

VentureBeat on Reputation Defender

ReputationDefender Official Blog

Teacher Fired Over MySpace Photo

Mahalo on Reputation Defender

Reputation Defender Official MySpace

Wired.com - Delete Your Bad Web Rep

Mashable.com on Reputation Defender

Fast Company on Reputation Defender

CyberLaw - Stanford.edu - Reputation Defender Article

Reputation Defender Turnstile

WRAL - Local Tech Wire

TradeVibes - Reputation Defender

There are many more.... I receive many emails from people all over the country and world that are being harmed online - many cannot afford the high costs of litigation. I always recommend Reputation Defender as an alternative or in combination with the legal path.

I am not a spokesperson for Reputation Defender, nor do I receive money or referral fees from them - I simply am a very satisfied client and want others to know there is such a service out there as Internet Gossip can be viewed as FACT. In many cases, that can hurt a persons' reputation.

Michael Fertik to be Featured on SpotLight Radio

The Online Reputation Management Industry is booming and ReputationDefender is leading the way. With issues of Internet privacy, cyber bullying, social networking and Internet defamation being featured in mainstream media more than ever, people are finally starting to ask questions about the possible effects of their Internet use.

Listen here: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/spotlight/2008/10/23/Your-Online-Reputation-May-be-Costly-to-your-Future

Sue Scheff: Don't Be Cyber Bullied

By Love Our Children USA

Cyber Bullying is social terror by technology ... and it’s on the rise.

When a kid of any age, up to 18 is threatened, humiliated, harassed, or humiliated via use of technology --- this is Cyber Bullying. It’s harmful and it’s dangerous!

This social online terror is used through e-mail, cell phones, pager text messages, instant messaging, Web sites, online personal polling Web sites. It is done by kids deliberately and repeatedly and is used by an individual or group with the intention of harming other kids and teens.

It’s cool to use technology to talk to your friends and make new ones. While most kids use the Internet responsibly, others are using all of this technology to terrorize and Cyberbully!

Cyber Bullying is the perfect way for bullies to remain anonymous.

Cyber Bullying makes it easier for bullies because they are not face to face with their victim(s.)

Read Entire Article here: http://www.loveourchildrenusa.org/kidsteens_cyberbullying.php

Sue Scheff: Maintaining Your Online Image

Reputation Defender has expanded again - Now many people can take advantage of their MyEdge services!

I have used MyEdge for almost 2 years now have been extremely happy with their team of professionals. I was very excited to hear they have recently offered to a wider audience with reasonable costs.

Maintaining your Online Image has become a priority for so many people. As someone that was nearly destroyed in Cyberspace - I know how critical it is to be aware of what is looming on the World Wide Web.

After winning a jury verdict for over $11M for Internet Damages to my organization, my family and myself online - I will continue to use be a voice for others that are being maligned online - and continue to encourage people to look to the future - and know it will be safer online with services like ReputationDefender on your side.

Remember what you post today can haunt you tomorrow!

Sue Scheff Updates Website on E-Venge!

Visit http://www.suescheffpodcasts.com/ for the newly added Rachael Ray Show! The hot topic of Cyber Slander and Online Harassment was discussed. My victory of over $11.M jury verdict for damages proves that free speech will not condone Internet Defamation.

Sue Scheff: Keeping Your Profile Clean

Keeping Your Profile Clean By Elizabeth Ody

Since winning an unprecedented jury verdict of over $11M for Internet Defamation and Invasion of Privacy, more and more people are learning about the valuable services of companies like ReputationDefender.

In today's CyberWorld - it only takes a few keystrokes to potentially ruin lives and businesses. I will continue to be a voice to help others and help promote Internet Safety.

Sue Scheff, ReputationDefender, MyEdge

As a very satisfied client of ReputationDefender (I am not a sponsor or spokesperson for them) I am very excited about their introduction of their new service that can financially fit many peoples needs - MyEdge.

What is MyEdge?

Take control of your online reputation. Own your search engine results. Harness the power of the Worldwide Leader in Online Reputation Management (ORM) with MyEdge from ReputationDefender. For as little as $99, you can ensure search results display the information YOU want others to see when searching for you on Google and other major search engines.Personal PR for the Web has finally arrived.

Learn more by visiting www.reputationdefender.com/myedge

I personally have fought Internet Defamation and won an unprecedented jury verdict for damages done to me online of over $11M. With the verdict I was vindicated - with ReputationDefender, I recovered my online reputation to match who I am, not what E-venger's want people to believe.

Sue Scheff: Revenge is a dish best served ... online

Vengeance websites are giving angry women the chance to expose their ex-partners as love rats. David Smith on the rising tide of ‘e-venge’

Click here for entire article.

As a victim of E-Venge (Sue Scheff) I know firsthand how deadly a few keystrokes can be to a person, a business and in life. I fought back - and won an uprecedented jury verdict for damages of over $11M for malicious and defamatory online comments.

Free speech will not condone defamation - this is not about the first amendment. I will continue to be a voice in promoting Internet Safety without infringing on free speech. My meetings with my Senator and my Congresswoman are the beginning of a long journey towards positive change.

Sue Scheff on The Rachael Ray Show - Hot Topic

Sue Scheff continues to be a voice against CyberSlander. As both a victim and survivor of Internet Defamation, she has become a leader in promoting Cyber Safety.

On April 17th Sue Scheff appeared on the Rachael Ray Show talking about Cyber Slander and promoting her upcoming new book - Wit’s End!

Free Speech will never condone defamation. In an unprecedented jury verdict for damages, Scheff was awarded over $11Mfor the malicious and defamatory online comments from a woman that wanted E-Venge.

For more articles on E-Venge - check out http://www.suescheffpodcasts.com/. Sue Scheff retained the priceless services of Reputation Defender. If you are a victim of Internet Abuse, take a moment to review the services Reputation Defender has to offer.

If you are a parent, it is important to consider Reputation Defender MyChild to help protect your child online.

Sue Scheff - Internet Slander, Defamation - SAFETY!

Check out my new website on Podcasts about E-Venge.

Today's Cyber World has created new concerns for many people, especially parents and their kids using the Social Networking sites such as MySpace.

It is important to read how to protect your kids online and also be aware of where they are surfing.

I often recommend to parents to consider Reputation Defender/MyChild to help them monitor their children's name and where and how it is being used online.

Sue Scheff Promoting Internet Safety

Cyberbullying has become a past-time for some people, that in my opinion, have too much time on their hands. Wouldn't it be nice if they could find some constructive work that may actually help people?

Since I have been put in the media attention with my court victories including winning an unprecedented $11.3M jury verdict for damages, I am now working with one of my Florida State Senator's and we have meet with our Congresswoman this month. Together we will continue to promote Internet Safety.

It is time to make Cyberspace a safe place not only for children, but for people that are being ruined by people with too much time on their hands - and people that believe that free speech is a free for all on the Internet. Remember, free speech does not condone defamation and libelous statements.

As I begin the garnishment of the defendant that has $11.3M judgment on her - it should be a reminder to all those that want to hurt others with a stroke of a key.The "obsession" with me may not stop, but I will use it to help others and use it to promote Internet Safety. Taking all the negative and turning it into a positive result..... Fighting back against Internet Abuse and helping protect others from the type of harassment.

Sue Scheff: Five Ways to Defend Yourself Online

True or false, the information people find about you on the Web can have a big impact on your life. Here are five techniques to make sure that what people read about you is good (or at least true).

Click Here for the full article.

Defending yourself online has became a serious concern for many people. The lack of regulations in Cyberspace means you have to learn to maintain your own Google Image.As both a victim and survivor of Internet Defamation, I know first hand the toll this can take on a person and their family. I fought back and won an unprecedented jury verdict for damages of $11.3M.

Free Speech does not condone defamation!

Sue Scheff - Reputation Defender/MyEdge

In today's crazy world of Cyberspace - it can be a free-for-all to literally destroy longstanding reputable people and organizations with a stroke of a keypad. With this, priceless services like Reputation Defender have become in demand.

As a client of Reputation Defender, I can personally attest to their remarkable services as well as their compassion to help people that are being harmed via the Internet.I was a victim of Internet Defamation and now a survivor of it - not only because I won an unprecedented $11.3 Million jury verdict for damages, but because I fought back!I am not a spokesperson for Reputation Defender, but I am certainly a very satisfied client and completely amazed at their dedication to keep the Internet a safe place for everyone.

For those that believe that it is about hiding the ugly, think again - Reputation Defender is selective and does their due diligent. I am proud to be their client. When I went public about retaining this service, it was a difficult decision - but in the end, I realized my voice has helped so many others as well as received the attention of Congress to hopefully make some legislative changes to promote Internet Safety.

I have meet with my Florida Senator several times and just meet with my Congresswoman - I am confident positive changes will be made to protect people and children in Cyberspace.

As a Parent Advocate, I am impressed with their latest service - MyChild which can help protect your kids identity and more. With today's tragedies online - as parents we need to take any and all pre-cautions to keep our children safe.Read more about Reputation Defender. Click Here.

Sue Scheff: Internet Safety

Today’s kids have grown up online. Finding their way around the Internet and posting on social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook is part of their every day life. But in this online world … What are they saying? Who are they “talking” to? How can we keep our kids safe from danger – both emotional and physical?

Did you know that 70 percent of teens on the Internet have accidentally found pornography on the web; 60 percent have been contacted online by a stranger; another 60 percent have been victims of online bullying; and 45 percent have posted personal information?

The Internet Generation tells of online experiences and stories your kids may not be telling you about this 24/7 cyber- world. You’ll hear insights on setting specific rules, keeping track of kids’ online visits, and talking with them – armed with hard facts and real-life examples – about the very real threats out there.

When it comes to Internet know-how, can parents ever catch up with their kids? Yes. Watch The Internet Generation and start the conversation with your children about what’s on the Internet – the good and the bad. The Internet is here to stay, and it’s our responsibility to keep kids safe, especially when they’re online.

**************************

Reputation Defender MyChild is a great place for parents to start for cyber safety for their kids.

Sue Scheff Podcasts on Internet Abuse

Check out my new Podcasts. Internet Slander, Internet Defamation and Cyberbullying is gaining more and more attention. Stay tuned - more to come.

Sue Scheff: Free Speech or Lack of Parenting?

I was contacted by CNN News in regards to this recent story.

As a parent advocate, I am proactive in helping parents protect their children in Cyberspace - whether it is monitoring their MySpace account - or using other protective measures such as Reputation Defender/MyChild to monitor your child’s privacy - but this story completely shocked me.

How can a parent condone a 13 year old writing about a principal in sexual ways? Where is this coming from? The parent is claiming their son has “free speech” - and they are correct about that, but when your 8th grader is calling someone a rapist or child molester without any substantiated evidence, in my opinion, this could be considered defamation - and as my beliefs continues - “Free Speech does not condone defamation.” Furthermore - the writings of “giving students anal” or “jacking off in my office” - is absolutely disgusting that a 13 year old writes this way. This is my personal opinion.

Read Below:

FEBRUARY 21–The parents of an Ohio boy who was expelled this month for creating a phony MySpace profile that described his middle school’s principal as a child molester have filed a federal lawsuit claiming that the 13-year-old’s free speech rights have been violated by education officials. Toader and Marianna Osan claim that their son (who is identified only by his initials in U.S. District Court filings) was improperly booted from the eighth grade at Hillside Middle School in Parma after educators learned of the boy’s creation of a MySpace page for principal Jeff Cook. The MySpace profile, which was headlined “Your Princeypal,” did not carry Cook’s name, but it included his photo and identified him as the Hillside Middle School principal. The since-removed profile, an excerpt of which you’ll find below, listed Cook’s general interests as “giving students anal” and “jacking off in my office,” and named his heroes as Michael Jackson, Adolph Hitler, and Saddam Hussein. For his vulgar online handiwork, “M.O.” was first suspended, and then, on February 7, was informed that he was being expelled (for “malicious harassment”) until June 10, effectively the end of the school year, according to a February 20th court filing. His parents argue that students “disrespecting teachers outside of school is an age-old tradition, and one from which teachers neither need nor deserve protection…It would be naive to think that even the most popular principal is not the subject of student ridicule and parody.” The Osans are seeking their son’s immediate return to school and a judicial order protecting his off-campus speech, which previously included the observation that Cook had an affinity for the Purple Penetrator, a sex toy.

Sue Scheff: Cyberbullying is becoming a serious concern among teens

More and more news articles, media and others are finally taking Cyberbullying seriously. As both a victim and survivor of being abused in Cyberspace - I know first hand how important this subject is.

Kids today need to be aware of what lingers online as well as take precautions not to feed into Cyberbullys and their tactics of invading a child's privacy.

As a parent, you can take steps to protect your kids online. Know what they are doing and where they are going in Cyberspace. It is almost as important as knowing where they are going when they leave your house! Take Cyberspace seriously!

A recent news article by the Associated Press is one of many that are bringing this awareness to parents.

I always encourage parents to consider Reputation Defender MyChild to help protect your children online, especially in the social networking sites such as MySpace and others.