CHINA / National

7 in 10 office workers post privacy on the web
By Li Qian (Chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2006-07-27 16:40

The Internet is commonly used in many aspects of people¡¯s work and life throughout the country. More and more the web is being used to relay private information.

 

As the Shanghai-based Oriental Morning Post reported Thursday, nearly seven out of ten of white-collar web users intentionally expose their private lives on the net on a regular basis. Why? For the attention.

 

Lisa is a sales director in a fast-paced consumer goods company. Despite the full working schedule, she has been enjoying going to pubs and discos, and recently, surfing the Internet and writing in a blog.

 

She likes posting her thoughts about work, life, and love affairs on her blog and sharing them with other viewers. She gets a lot of pleasure from seeing how many hits her stories get.

 

¡°I got into the habit of writing a web journal from my friend Lucy,¡± Lisa said.

 

Lucy is typically a modern girl, dressing in stylish clothes and leading a trendy way of life. ¡°People should have their own unique voices and learn to show off,¡± Lucy said. She got to know her current boyfriend through the photos and the phone number he left on her blog.

 

According to a survey of white collar workers conducted by Kerui, a professional advisory company, 69 per cent of those surveyed regularly show their personal lives to others on the Internet, while only 16 per cent of them give their true names.

 

The survey also showed the most popular network services among office workers are blogs and bulletin boards, where they display their private lives, office affairs, financial conditions, and viewpoints. Stories of private lives and office gossip are the hottest topics.

 

The company believes although office workers are surrounded by all kinds of information, they have few chances to communicate with others in their lives. Thus they find a new channel to gain recognition and to express their true feelings on the web.