Online social networks are web-based services, platforms, or sites that “allow individuals to (1) construct a public or semi-public profile within a bounded system, (2) articulate a list of other users within whom they share a connection, and (3) view and traverse their list of connections and those made by others within their system” (Boyd and Ellison, 2008). By facilitating the establishment and maintenance of social relations as well as the sharing of interests and activities within individual networks, social networking sites (such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, MySpace, YouTube, and more recently Google+) have become increasingly integrated in our modern culture, changing the way we work, study, play and socialize, and how we spend time and money.

Notwithstanding the many personal, educational, and work benefits offered by online social networks, their use raises a variety of social and ethical concerns (e.g., privacy and security threats, cyber-bullying, addiction, deception, censorship and surveillance). The objective of this mini-track is to develop theoretical insight and understanding on topics and issues that address the troubling or dark side of online social networks. We welcome conceptual, theoretical, and empirical papers that enrich our understanding of the social and ethical issues of online social networks.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:

-- Privacy risks

-- Security vulnerabilities

-- Cyber-bullying and cyber-stalking

-- Social network addiction

-- Risk to child safety

-- Risk to reputation and confidentiality

-- Violations of intellectual property right

-- Ethical issues in social network analysis and mining

-- Risk of identity theft

-- Deception on social networks

-- Reduction in productivity and disruption to working environment

-- Negative impact of social networking on relationships (e.g., social isolation and distraction from quality relationships)

-- Negative health consequences (e.g., personality and brain disorder) associated with the use of social networking sites

-- Social network surveillance

-- Social network censorship

Bo Sophia Xiao
Computing & Information Systems, Department of Computer Science
Hong Kong Baptist University
Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong
Tel: +852 3411 5818
Email: boxiao@comp.hkbu.edu.hk

Christy M.K. Cheung
Department of Finance and Decision Sciences, School of Business
Hong Kong Baptist University
Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong
Tel: +852 3411 2102
Fax: +852 3411 5855
Email: ccheung@hkbu.edu.hk

Matthew K.O. Lee
College of Business, City University of Hong Kong
Kowloon Tong, Hong Kong
Tel: +852 2 788 7348
Fax: +852 2 788 8192
Email: ismatlee@cityu.edu.hk