Social networking boom among older people - Ofgem

The number of older people using the internet has increased over the last two years, with social networking also seeing a rise.

This is according to a recent Ofcom study, which found that older people are getting involved with a range of networking tools, including blogging.

UK broadband users as a whole are also turning to social networking sites, the regulatory body revealed, as 38% of UK internet users now have a profile on the likes of Facebook and MySpace.

This marks a considerable rise from the 22% using the websites in 2007.

Robin Goad, Director of Research for Experian Hitwise in the UK, commented: "During September Facebook was the second most visited website in the UK after Google."

Earlier this year, Facebook usernames were introduced to give people a more personal experience on the social networking site.

Users are now able to log into the site with their username, which is aimed at giving them an easy-to-remember way of accessing their accounts.

Jason Glynn, uSwitch communications expert, says: "This is good news and an encouraging trend. With social networking become such a integral part of people's lives it is vital that certain groups in society, like older people, are not left behind."