Social Networks Exploding, May Appear in Government

A VP analyst at Gartner and distinguished analyst Andrea Di Maio says it's time for government departments to move past previous failed endeavors and wake up and smell the social. Considering the explosive social networking growth revealed by a survey Nielsen just published, now may be a great time to begin transitioning some government operations to social media tools.

Clearly, social networking has proven to be an efficient tool for information exchange, and a large chunk of the greater US population seems to have the hang of things. Moving forward, Gartner's report postulates that government processes ranging from human services, tax and revenue, health care, and education could one day incorporate social networking tools.

The report steered very clear of the security and privacy implications of the use of social networking in government functions, though there will undoubtedly be discussion of this sort if governments start going this route. Read more.