GLOBAL news - The number of online searches for mortgage-related terms soared by 71% between October 2010 and January 2011, research from marketing agency Greenlight shows.
The firm’s Retail Banking Sector Report for January shows there were 2.7 million searches for retail banking in the month, 35% of which were for mortgage-related terms. Loans were the second most popular sub-sector, accounting for 33% of searches.
In January, the phrase ’mortgage calculator’ was searched for 368,000 times and accounted for 13% of all searches performed for retail banking, almost double the market share it secured in October’s report.
MoneySupermarket.com was the most visible website for mortgage-related keywords, achieving 67% visibility by ranking at position one for 32 terms, including ’mortgages’, while Halifax was the second most visible site. [source]
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Global News - As many as 7.5 million kids under the age of 13 are using the Facebook service, despite the company's official prohibition -- 5 million under the age of 10.
For minors who lack the experience or judgment to use a social network, this raises the scary potential of sexual predators tracking down kids who reveal their age in an online chat, cyberbullying and more, according to a new survey released Tuesday by Consumer Reports.
“A million kids were bullied on Facebook in the last year," Jeff Fox, technology editor at Consumer Reports, told FoxNews.com. "A 10-year-old is not well-equipped to deal with those things.”
Fox said Facebook recognizes that kids should not use the service and prohibits access to those under 13. But the age verification system is weak, he said: It’s too easy to lie about your age. Facebook could instead use existing age verification services such as Privo. Or a parent could first prove their age using credit card verification and then vouch for the child’s age, he suggested.
Facebook declined to comment specifically to FoxNews.com about the Consumer Reports survey, but did release an official statement about the Consumer Reports survey.
"Recent reports have highlighted just how difficult it is to implement age restrictions on the Internet and that there is no single solution to ensuring younger children don’t circumvent a system or lie about their age," the statement reads. "We appreciate the attention that these reports and other experts are giving this matter and believe this will provide an opportunity for parents, teachers, safety advocates and Internet services to focus on this area, with the ultimate goal of keeping young people of all ages safe online.”
A serious issue?
Child safety is but one aspect of a complex problem. The Consumer Reports survey found that has many as 5 million computers in U.S. households were exposed to a virus.
