Here is some good Google news. Every tech blog, organizations and companies are staking claim on the spots that Google plus network has finally provided just last week. The Google Branded Pages was created and the online community can finally take a breath of relief. But not so fast, since it seems like the branded pages have a glitch somewhere in its system. Why do I say that? Read the Google news below.
Branded pages of Google plus network has no armor against fraudulent brand accounts, as just recently it was found out that a fake Google brand page had been created for the Bank of America. To further cause damage, the page was laden with a line of mocking pictures and other unpleasant content that could have created a dent to the huge banking institution’s reputation. The page even got over eleven hundred follower and more than seven hundred Google plus ones.
Here are the sample posts and the tagline that tripped it:
Tagline: “We took your bailout money and your mortgage rates are going up.”
Post: “Tomorrow bank Of America will freeze all of its assets and all homes will be foreclosed on”.
Besides the mocking content, the page also displayed a line of ugly pictures of former CEO Kenneth Lewis, who guided the lender through merging with Merrill Lynch. Unfortunately the page was taken down yesterday. However, the fact that it was created the first time the branded pages launched created a major concern among brands regarding “brand jacking”. This is when an unauthorized individual or group manages to obtain another’s’ identity and pose as them. Google news has not disclosed who were behind the ruse but Google has been trying to appease complaints of companies and brands.
The fact that Google did not allow users to use pseudonyms as their G+ names has a lot to do with the occurrence. Google plus has proven strong in their stance to make it that way to authenticate a person’s identity on the social network. This actually caused uproar since there were several accounts that have been shut down by Google for not using real names. However, the Bank of America wasn’t able to identify the ones behind the offense because Google was deceived by some online troublemakers. However, there is one ultimate way to prove a brand’s identity if they want their own Google brand page and that is to link the page to their business website. People will be able to know which is legit and which is not through Google plus verified account badge on the brand page. In addition, Google encourages the Google plus community to report any profile violations.
This Google news is not that remarkable as “brand jacking” happens all the time, especially on social networks. However, the fact that it is Google and not some other low-life networking site makes it interesting.
