Our moms did everything to keep us safe as children, and still try even though we’re adults. And of course we say we would do the same thing, but are we? In an age of Internet social sites such as Myspace and Facebook we need to step up our instinctual mother hen routine and protect our children.
It isn’t unusual to see stories about teenagers running away to foreign countries to meet ‘boyfriends’ from Myspace or Facebook – and if you’re anything like me you’re shaking your head wondering, ‘Where are these kids’ parents?’ Maybe we should stop and take a moment to look over our own shoulders and ask the question ‘Am I putting my child at risk?’
The ability to network with people you haven’t seen since high school, or aunts and uncles on the other side of the country is wonderful and the immediacy of it all is astounding, but at what cost? These ‘relationships’ may seem like a great idea at first, and many probably are, but we need to know the ins and outs of sites such as these so that the personal information and pictures we all seem so willing to share remain just that, personal.
Social networking sites are fun and it’s great to relive memories of yesteryears, but knowing your profile is safe makes the experience more enjoyable. Both Myspace and Facebook allow you to customize your privacy settings. Did you know that? Do you know how to secure your personal pages? Take some time to navigate the site and learn what security measures exist and use them, you won’t regret it!
Next month we’ll have a ‘how-to’ section for securing your Facebook page…stay tuned! Until then do some research of your own and learn as much as you can – knowledge is power!