Facebook to Scan Links for Safety

By Cynthia Herbert :: 8:06 PM

Facebook has announced that it will check all links posted to the social network by users. Facebook is partnering with Websense Security Labs to protect users from following links from the site that may direct them to malicious websites or viruses.

When a user clicks on a link in their news feed or on someone’s profile, Facebook will first check that link against Websense’s database to determine if it is harmful. If the link is identified as harmful, a message will appear that encourages the user not to follow the link. The message will also explain why that particular link was blocked by Websense. Users will have the option to continue on to the destination link, if they so desire.

“We’re excited about our partnership with Websense to provide industry leading tools to help our users protect themselves,” Dan Rubinstein, Facebook’s Site Integrity Product Manager said. “Facebook cares deeply about protecting users from potentially malicious content on the internet.”