Brits Embrace Facebook, Pay the Price

Photos in 'private' online profiles land Oxford students in hot water

By Dustin Lushing, Newser Staff

Posted Jul 18, 2007 12:32 PM CDT

(Newser) – Miss New Jersey may never be mistaken for a Rhodes Scholar, but unlike some British university students, she knows how to make sure her Facebook profile is private. The social-networking site that nearly brought down the beauty queen is wreaking havoc across the Atlantic, with Oxford students facing disciplinary action and fines for behavior captured on the site.

Posted photos showed post-exam revelry that involved confetti, meat, and other substances Brits evidently consider celebratory, the Guardian reports. It's not clear how the photos found their way to university officials, who can levy fines of up to £100 ($200), but one student who says her profile was "friends only" bluntly says: "I am very pissed."

[Images (3)]

[Videos (1)]

A handout photo shows an image of British philosophy and mathematics student, Alex Hill from her Facebook, "social networking" Web site, at Oxford University in England in June of 2007. Hill, 21, told... (Associated Press)

Student checks his Facebook profile. ((c) Kieran Huggins)

Facebook.com founder Mark Zuckerberg smiles at Facebook headquarters in Palo Alto, Calif., in this Feb. 5, 2007, file photo. Facebook Inc. has avoided the acquisition frenzy that's gobbled up MySpace.com,... (Associated Press)

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A mass "Flash Mob" pillow fight at Oxford, heavily organized via Facebook's social networking technology. (timsayer (YouTube))

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Brits Embrace Facebook, Pay the Price