Social Networking Safety Guidelines
Adults and Children Both Must Follow Rules of Safety when Networking
Oct 8, 2009
While social networking has many benefits, it also has dangers for young and old alike. Up until recently, social networking has been the domain of the young.
This is no longer the case. Adults got started more slowly but their numbers have grown quickly from 8% in 2005 to 35% as of December 2008. There is no reason to think this number will not continue to increase. October has been declared Cyber Security Awareness Month in the United States and Canada. All must be careful to network safely.
What is Social Networking?
A social network allows members to post information to the Internet. This information can be about the member himself, his company, family, friends, or business. These sites may be available to only a few selected individuals or open to anyone surfing the Internet. The top five social networks by monthly visit, as of January 2009 are:
- MySpace
- Flixster
What is Posted?
Anything and everything gets posted to social networks. Tweens and teens will post their thoughts about their friends, school, music, movies, celebrities, family problems, social relationships, etc.
Adults might post information about their family, co-workers, boss, an upcoming vacation, thoughts about work, job searching, and more. While these topics may seem innocent on the surface, in the wrong hands, the information could be dangerous.
Dangerous Postings
People conversing face-to-face frequently discuss personal issues. Unless the conversation is recorded there is no record of the content of the conversation. When a post is made to a social network, the whole world can have access to it in a matter of moments.
- A student posts a photograph of an unpopular teacher. The photo is edited to make the teacher look as if they are teaching a class while wearing a t-shirt with an obscenity written on it.
- An adult posts thoughts about her “stupid boss” and how the company is in financial trouble.
- An adult or child might write about an upcoming out of town vacation (their profile contains the home address or even just the city and state).
All these posts have the potential to become dangerous.
- The photo of the teacher could jeopardize the teacher’s job or result in the student being disciplined by the school.
- Negative posts about a boss or one’s company could result in job loss, lawsuits, or even difficulty in getting another job later down the line. Nobody likes a disloyal employee.
- Information about vacations or out of town trips literally posts red flags for burglars who are on the lookout for unprotected homes left empty while residents travel out of town.
Guidelines for Safe Social Networking Posts
With a little forethought, social networking can be a creative, productive, and even fun experience. Social network users can make this experience safer by following a few simple rules.
- Users should avoid posting photographs of themselves. Consider creating an avatar (a clip art character that may resemble or totally not resemble the actual user).
- Limit the amount of personal data the user posts about herself. If a user lives in a small town or suburb and has a non-mainstream name, try to avoid posting this if possible. It is a simple thing for criminals to get an address to go along with the name.
- Only post safe information. Don’t threaten anyone. Don’t defame company, co-workers, family members or acquaintances. Could this post offend someone that has power over the user?
- Before making a statement about his company, the user must remember he represents his company. He is part of the image of his company. If he publishes something foolish it can reflect poorly on himself and his company.
- When responding to a post, make the response positive. Don’t belittle the originator of the post. Try to provide constructive criticism. Always treat others the way you want them to treat you. It may sound like a cliché but more friends will be made than lost.
- The user should only post information she knows is true. She should never gossip.
- Social network posts should not contain vulgar or harsh language. This can only damage the user’s image in the eyes of the reader.
- Proper grammar and spelling is also something the user needs to attend to. The abbreviations of texting and twittering (Twitter is the exception to this rule) should not be used in posting to social networks with no limits on posting size. An opinion stated using proper grammar and punctuation will carry a lot more weight than one containing spelling errors and poor grammar.
- When posting information from an outside source, always cite the source. This can be done in a formal bibliographic format or with a hyperlink to the source.
Social networking creates a potential for making friends or enemies. With a little planning and common sense thinking, it will make more friends than enemies.
Additional Article on Computer Security
Computer Security Day in the Workplace
Resources
Lefebvre, R. Craig, "Demographics of Social Network Users (and Other Audience Research)"
Cofino, Kim, "Student Blogging Guidelines,"
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