Assessing Social Risk Due To Exposure From Linked Contacts

An information handling system comprising:

• one or more processors;
• a memory coupled to at least one of the processors;
• a network adapter that connects the information handling system to a computer network;
• and
• a set of instructions stored in the memory and executed by at least one of the processors in order to assess risk to a user of the information handling system due to a link to a social network contact, wherein the set of instructions perform actions of:
• receiving, at the network adapter, a set of risky action values, the set corresponding to the social network contact;
• storing the set of risky action values in the memory;
• calculating a risk level corresponding to a selected one or more of the risky action values;
• and
• performing a preventative security action using one of the processors, wherein the performed preventative security action is based on the calculated risk level.

A computer program product stored in a computer readable medium, comprising functional descriptive material that, when executed by an information handling system, causes the information handling system to perform actions that include:

• receiving a set of risky action values corresponding to the social network contact;
• calculating a risk level corresponding to a selected one or more of the risky action values;
• and
• performing a preventative security action based on the calculated risk level.

A method of identifying risks to social network contacts from a user of an information handling system, the method comprising:

• detecting a plurality of potentially risky actions performed by the user at the information handling system;
• identifying one or more risky action values wherein each risky action value corresponds to one of the of detected potentially risky actions;
• and
• transmitting, over a computer network, the identified risky action values to one or more social network contacts.

An information handling system comprising:

• one or more processors;
• a memory coupled to at least one of the processors;
• a network adapter that connects the information handling system to a computer network;
• and
• a tracking agent implemented by a set of instructions stored in the memory and executed by at least one of the processors in order to assess risk from a user of the information handling system to social network contacts, wherein the set of instructions perform actions of:
• detecting a plurality of potentially risky actions performed by the user of the information handling system;
• identifying one or more risky action values wherein each risky action value corresponds to one of the of detected potentially risky actions;
• and
• transmitting, over the computer network, the identified risky action values to one or more social network contacts.

A computer program product stored in a computer readable medium, comprising functional descriptive material that, when executed by an information handling system, causes the information handling system to perform actions that include:

• detecting a plurality of potentially risky actions performed by a user at the information handling system;
• identifying one or more risky action values wherein each risky action value corresponds to one of the of detected potentially risky actions;
• and
• transmitting, over a computer network, the identified risky action values to one or more social network contacts.