[Air-L] How does Facebook find friends?

[Daniel Oliveira]

It is either pure magic...or Facebook uses his e-mail contacts!

Although he did not allow Facebook to forward friendship requests, Facebook
still reads the adresses and builds up suggestions!

Thats the way I see it!

Daniel Tilly Oliveira
Lisbon-Portugal

On Fri, Sep 24, 2010 at 7:14 AM, Anders Fagerjord <
anders.fagerjord at media.uio.no> wrote:

> Dear all,
>
> does anyone understand the Facebook friend suggestions algorithm?
>
> Last night, my stepson joined Facebook. Immediately, it suggested he be
> friends with his mother, his grandfather, and his granduncle.
>
> How could Facebook know they were related? They had no friends in common,
> and didn't share friends-of-friends either. His last name is common in
> Norway (and his granduncle has a different name). He didn't enter any phone
> number or postal address.
>
> He used his gmail account when he joined Facebook, but did not allow the
> book to search his e-mail contacts (and he doesn't know his uncle's e-mail
> address).
>
> Does anyone understand how Facebook pulls this trick?
>
> --anders
>
> --
> Anders Fagerjord, dr.art.
> Associate professor, Head of Studies
>
> Department of Media and Communication,
> University of Oslo
> P.O. Box 1093 Blindern
> N-0317 OSLO
> Norway
>
> http://www.media.uio.no   http://fagerjord.no
>
>
>
>
>
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-- 
Deh.
[+Sol]