1.2 billion users worldwide -- 82% of the world’s internet population over the age of 15 -- now log on to a social networking site.

Internet users around the world spent close to one in every five minutes on social networking sites in October, says new research by research firm comScore, making it the most engaging online activity worldwide.

It’s only taken a few years for social networking to gain the attention (and time) of internet users worldwide. In 2007 Internet users spent only six percent of their time on social networking sites.

“The emergence and widespread global adoption of social networks has vastly influenced human interaction on an individual, community and larger societal level, and underscores the convergence of the online and offline worlds,” notes Linda Boland Abraham, comScore CMO and EVP of global development in the December 21 report. “Regardless of geography, social networks are weaving themselves ever more intricately into the fabric of the digital experience, opening a world of new opportunity for business and technology.”

Facebook, the third largest web property online, is king of all social networking sites. Visits to Facebook accounted for one in every seven minutes internet users spent online in October and 75 percent of all time spent on all social networking sites.

Twitter is the top dog when it comes to microblogging but China’s Sina Weibo is growing quickly too. Sina Weibo grew 181 percent over the last year and was the tenth largest social network in October; Twitter grew 59 percent during the same period.

In a December 22 post on its blog, data intelligence firm Experian Hitwise revealed that digital pinboard site Pinterest has grown to become one of the top 10 social networking sites. It’s interesting news as the social network is still in its infancy and is currently invite-only.

“The invitation only site received nearly 11 million total visits during the week ending December 17, 2011, almost 40 times the number of total visits versus just six months ago (week ending June 18, 2011),” said Experian Hitwise.

Social networking is not just limited to the web. Close to 65 percent of all smartphone users in the US visited a social networking site in October; two in five used their mobile device to connect to a social network nearly every day.

Internet users in Israel were the most engaged social networkers in the world, racking up an average of 11.1 hours per visitor on networking sites in October -- close to double the worldwide average of 5.7 hours per visitor.

Latin American countries accounted for five out of the top ten most engaged social networking countries while the United States, surprisingly, didn’t even make it into the top ten.

Top ten most engaged countries for social networking in October 2011, with average number of hours per visitor:

1.     Israel - 11.1 hours
2.     Argentina - 10.7 hours
3.     Russia - 10.4 hours
4.     Turkey - 10.2 hours
5.     Chile - 9.8 hours
6.     The Philippines - 8.7 hours
7.     Colombia - 8.5 hours
8.     Peru - 8.3 hours
9.     Venezuela - 7.9 hours
10.     Canada - 7.7 hours

-AFP Relaxnews

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