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Abstract: In this paper, an analysis of social networking threats was done. Websites for social networking are not just common to the youth of today, but it can be used by all parts of society to meet their daily needs and helps to keep in touch with old friends. Some of the sites of social networking including Facebook, Skype, Instagram, etc. have grown in popularity at an impressive level. Social networking sites could be used by individuals or organizations to create platforms through which users can share information or access it. According to the latest studies, threats in the social environment are mostly caused by social networking users that openly sharing private and personal information regarding themselves. The indicated shared information could be, relationship status, birth date, home address, telephone number, email address, and even the name of the school. Whether social networking users' behaviour is accidental or deliberate, this can provide an opportunity for perpetrators to figure out a method to exploit threats on social networking sites. This research uses a systematic literature review to analyse literature on social networking threats and different social networking sites. A diagram presenting the effects of social networking threats has been presented in this study as well. The results indicate that the most common social networking threats are phishing, spamming, cyberbullying and malware attacks. Children are more vulnerable to social networking threats because of less experience and lack of knowledge. The findings of the reviews provide knowledge to educate social networking users on the different social networking threats that they may come across while on social sites. As well as, feed into further research on developing guidelines for social networking users on how to protect themselves against social networking threats which can build awareness about potential threats to social networking.
Keywords: social networking threats, social sites, social threats protection
1.Introduction
In today's digital world, people are constantly looking at their smartphones, reading the newest updates and comments on social network sites about their connections. Rathore et al (2017) state that networking on social sites is a type of service on the web that establishes a virtual link between people of similar interest, experience and activities. It allows users to find new friends, expand the circle of friends...