Social Networking Sites

Social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace and LinkedIn have connected millions of people across the world. They allow anyone with internet access the ability to post images, create accounts, and share anything and everything they could possibly want. While it is advantageous to be able to connect with many others who share your interests or connecting with friends from the past, these sites are not without their drawbacks. Without exercising restraint, these valuable communication tools can pose serious threats to a person’s well being.

Numerous incidents have taken place since these social networking sites have gained in popularity. Megan Meier, a 13 year old student from Missouri, committed suicide after she was duped into thinking a boy online was interested in her and then later rejected. It was found by police later on that it was actually a mother of one of Megan’s friends who was posing as the online boy as a retaliatory attack against Megan for the soured friendship with her daughter. Kylie Kenney, an 8th grader from Vermont, was bullied online for over 2 years by fellow classmates with online threats and homophobic remarks. Police intervened and charges were subsequently filed against those classmates. Cyberbullying has gained national attention and is a real and present danger in today’s society. As we become more connected and rely on the internet to function in society, the dangers of these social networking sites will become more pronounced.

Another major issue with Facebook and other sites like it is the overshare of personal information. While most people are very careful about not sharing their social security number, they do not seem to feel the same about posting every other personal detail about themselves online. You can look at anyone’s MySpace or Facebook account and find out if they are married, divorced, where they live, where they work, what they did last night, where they are at right now, and what they plan on doing tomorrow. By posting all of this information, a predator has an easy time planning out either a virtual or physical attack. For instance, a friend of mine posted a picture with comments taken from his cell phone about a trip he was on. By doing this, I knew exactly where he was, who he was with, and how far from home he was. If I were a criminal, I would know that he is out with his entire family and how long it would possibly take for him to get home and therefore could break into his house. Or if I were an online stalker, by posting messages constantly updating your location or status, it would make following you that much easier. Even though these sites are accessed by anyone, most people seem to think that they have some privacy online or they never think that by sharing this information that someone could use it maliciously. Even businesses are using social networking sites to screen potential candidates. They can see what kind of images, messages and other information about the interviewee are posted to understand what kind of person they really are. This is becoming much a more common and accepted industry practice.

While these sites are often extremely useful and most of the interactions online are positive, like everything else they must be treated with caution and nothing is ever private.