Well, it was kind of bound to happen, but the growing interest in Google Wave has lead to a number of online scammers trying to take advantage of the small number of accounts handed out so far. Because of the way in which Google has decided to roll-out its latest game-changing product, the more seedy side of the internet has come out in force to try and manipulate the huge amount of desire surrounding invitations.
The effect has been seen all over Google’s own search engine, with black hat tactics being used to rank malicious sites highly on searches for ‘Google Wave’. One look at the many updates on Twitter shows that the attempts are also spreading there like wildfire. Surely Google will work quickly to rectify this issue, because it is certainly starting to dent the glow surrounding the product’s launch.
Google Wave is a platform that has the potential to completely change the online communication sphere, and if adopted by a wide enough group could be as impacting as sites such as MySpace, Facebook and Twitter. At its core is a complete set of tools for communication and collaboration that have never been seen together in the one place before, along with a few new innovations that seek to build upon the advances seen in the last few years.
The difference, I believe, is that Google Wave also has an opportunity to change the way that businesses operate – allowing for much more efficient and transparent collaboration between teams that could be made up of individuals all over the globe. If this new platform becomes accepted within corporate workflows, it truly could be an online revolution the likes of which we haven’t seen since the advent of email.
It’s a pity, albeit not an unexpected one, that the hype and excitement surrounding this new product is being taken advantage of. In the end, the safest way to progress is just to not trust anybody that you don’t know saying that they can get you a much coveted invitation. Many of these sites are filled with trojans and other malware, and your best option is to just wait patiently until a wider roll-out of the service comes around. Which, given the true revolution in communication that Google hopes this new product will bring about, probably won’t be too long a wait at all.
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