CyberAngels

Social Networking

People are no longer contained to work, bars or the PTA to meet new people. Many people have discovered that Myspace, Facebook, LiveJournal, and many other social networking sites are a great way to communicate with friends all over the globe. They are able to post messages, photos, and list all their favorite things about themselves.

Types of Social Networking Sites

  • General sites
  • Schools and colleges
  • Cultures (religion specific, race specific, nationality specific)
  • Business (Realtors or Lawyers)
  • Interest related (Dog owners, Laker's fans, knitters)
There is a drawback, however, to these virtual publishing sites - people often don't realize just how public and permanent their postings are. Social networking sites have cost people jobs, educational opportunities, and have even led to arrests. Removing content from a personal site doesn't help, as current technology "caches", or saves copies of, large portions of content.

Another serious consideration is the loss of privacy resulting from sharing information in such a public manner. Identity theft, offline stalking, lawsuits and other serious issues have been the result of injudiciously posted material.

Additional Resources

CERT: Staying Safe on Social Network Sites

CERT: Guidelines for Publishing Information Online

OnGuard: Social Networking

Get Safe Online: Safe Social Networking

NYS CSCIC: Social Networking

Related Articles

Children and Social Networking

Protecting Your Privacy


Visit our other sites: The Alliance of Guardian Angels | Curtis Sliwa | Guardian Angels Gear

Keep in Touch: Join our Mailing List

The Alliance of Guardian Angels, Inc. is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization ©The Alliance of
Guardian Angels, Inc.