- But how many of these students are aware of the risks that this visibility may cause them?
- Do they think about the fact that their every move can be tracked when they check-in places, or post pictures at campus-events?
- Are they aware that many stalkers often begin as"friends" on one of their networks?
When students are enrolled on our campus locations, it is our job as institution to provide a safe environment. In the present-day world of social media, keeping our students safe requires us to educate them on how to protect themselves online. My suggestion would be to include a social media safety seminar as part of the new-student orientation. I know some of you are rolling your eyes. You're wondering if student are actually going to pay attention to a seminar of this nature. But consider this:
- Burglars now use social media sites such as Foursquare to determine when homes are vacant, and open for robbing
- Our students keep many valuables in their dorm rooms and off-campus apartments, such as laptops, Xbox systems, TV's, etc
- Cyberstalking is now more common than physical harassment
- Students may not be aware that some of their followers on social media are doing more then following them.
- Fake social network accounts can be created to obtain important personal information by hackers.
- Student could be vulnerable to identity theft that could affect their financial aid, future employment, etc.
- Make them interactive. Check out this webinar to see a great example.
- Present the information as helpful guidelines rather than rigid rules.
- Provide resources and intructions on what students should do if they find themselves in an unsafe social media situation.
I learned more about social media policy and security through my Social Media Tactics and Strategies course at Marist College. After learning about all of the potential risks associated with online sharing, I am now more conscious of the privacy measures that I should take both personally, and for my professional brands. I also believe that colleges and universities need to be aware of the risks so they can educate their students, and employees about the risks in order to avoid potential crisis situations.
With this in mind, I leave you with one final video that you can share with your students to help keep them safe on social media.
Kate, nice writeup. The seminar idea is an interesting one. Obviously the reach of social media is far and wide and I suspect just about every student coming in to a campus is involved in social media to some degree. Yet, they probably think something bad will never happen to them. I am certain that you are correct that some would attend and not listen. That's their choice. And choices have consequences. As you demonstrate the numbers speak for themselves.
ReplyDeleteI think this class illustrates your point. We are required to have accounts for twitter, facebook, pinterest and create our own blogs…each of which has its own security and privacy protocol. How to use them effectively is the question. Prior to this class the only medium of those that I used was Facebook and I rarely checked in so I was never too concerned about privacy and security. But, now that I am on several forums of communication it is an issue. I thought I had a decent grasp of how to protect myself, but it wasn't until this week that I learned much more about stepping it up. I even found myself adjusting settings on all my accounts as I was reading along. I wish I would have done this reading prior to starting the class so I could have done this correctly right off the bat. Between the readings and all the posting this week the numbers are pretty sobering.
Hi George- Prior to this class, I was aware of some privacy settings on social media. For example, when I began my job search I tightened my security and privacy settings so only select people could view my profile. Not that I had anything to hide; I just didn't want future employers knowing all of my private business. Since learning about the additional potential risks of using social media, I do feel like I need to be more careful with what and how I post.
DeleteBut from a marketing and public relations perspective, organizations want people to check in with them and they sometimes throw in free benefits to those who check in places. For example, I was on a beach vacation 3 years ago when Foursquare had just been created. I went to a restaurant/bar with some friends to catch a game and the place was running a promotion that if it was your first time dining there and you checked into Foursquare, you got free appetizers. So I did, and it was great!
The above example shows how I used a geolocation network. But colleges and universities who want to engage with their students often do similar things. My college recently hosted an accepted students day. We encouraged students to check-in on Facebook, Foursquare, Instagram, etc and awarded them free tshirts and other prizes for doing so. My sister attended the 2nd largest university in the country, and she was always checking in places to get free stuff.
Colleges and universities want their target market (students) to check-in; it shows engagement. But at the same time, they need to educate their students on the proper security measures to take in order to protect their identities. So basically, colleges need to find the balance between the both promoting check-ins and providing social media safety instructions.
Hi Kate,
ReplyDeleteWhen I started my undergraduate degree, AIM and Facebook were the social media sites that were most utilized around my dorm. I knew not to share information on AIM and Facebook seemed like a pretty safe place to post on friends' timelines. However, as time went on it became apparent that not all that is said on social media sites is private. With that in mind, I think that it would be very beneficial for social media seminars to be given in colleges and universities.
Educating people on the risks associated with utlizing social media to its full potential may put them in harms way.
After my undergraduate years were over, I was concerned with making pictures and my profile only visible to my friends. However, not all "friends" made on social media sites are real friends. It is important for students to realize that they can put themselves at risk by something as small as making "friends" with classmates.
Exactly! The summer before my freshman year, Facebook was really taking off. I went on a "friending" spree, inviting and accepting friend requests from all students at my future college. Again, it seemed pretty safe at the time; it was just the thing to do. It never really occurred to me to wonder about who some of these friends really were, or what their motives may have been.
DeleteIn one capacity, this massive friending was beneficial to me. My now fiance actually reached out to me via Facebook the summer before my freshman year when he recognized we were from the same town. We had mutual friends, and I did remember him vaguely from high school. So opening that communication turned out well!
But I also had experiences where my social media friends tried to push the boundaries a little into my real life. There were several instances during my college years when I would receive messages from Facebook friends whom I had never met, but who wanted to pursue something more. While it may have been flattering, some of the messages were also a little unsettling such as "hey, I saw you in the student union today and you looked really really good." Messages like this make you aware that you're being watched not just online, but in-person as well. While I never had any further issues that grew out of these types of situations, I can see how they can escalate. But it also makes me wonder how many college men and women find themselves in these types of situations and don't know what to do? That's why I think colleges and universities need to make them aware of safety tools and resources they can use.
So like you, I began to clean up my Facebook my junior and senior year. I defriended alot of people whom I had never actually met. I also adjusted my privacy settings to be pretty strict.
On a final note, check out this article about the growing problem of Facebook stalking on college campus's: http://www.campussafetymagazine.com/Channel/Public-Safety/Articles/2012/06/Stopping-Stalkers.aspx
Really something to think about!
Hi Kate,
DeleteThat is so creepy. I can't believe that somebody found you on Facebook just from seeing you around the halls. There is somebody who I used to work with who I have blocked on several social media sites and I still see him show up on my LinkedIn ever now and again that he viewed my profile. After that, he went and took my email address from LinkedIn and emailed me a few times. It is very unsettling when people find you through different means of contact.
Your topic is something that is very important and should be shared for all age groups. Great post!
Kate, great post! You bring up a great point, that institutions need to take the initiative to protect their students from modern day harm = social media. You also explained it well when you stated that these seminars should present guidelines not rigid rules.
ReplyDeleteAs a mother of a five year old I wish that the district in my area educated my daughter about social media, the Internet, all that goes along with this connected society.
Unfortunately they do not and honestly I don’t believe it is a concern of theirs. I think of my three year old daughter as well when I see how easily maneuvering technology is for her. I see many profiles on facebook of children, which I completely disagree with.
MinorMonitor (2011) conducted a survey that revealed “38% of children on Facebook are 12 or under. 40 of 1,000 are 6 years old or younger” (para. 1) (http://www.minormonitor.com/2012/04/minormonitor-surveys-1000-parents-of-children-on-facebook-shares-results-on-realities-parental-concerns/). Scary statistics, to say the least.
I also liked your point about students vulnerability online pertaining to fake accounts. In addition I think students must be aware that their reputation (http://edudemic.com/2012/11/teach-students-about-social-media/) can be influenced by social media. You speak of college students who will ideally be seeking employment in the near future. Damaging pictures, posts, etc. can be all over online and at times without the students knowledge.
Regarding your seminar, do you see this as something to implement on a yearly basis? I am not sure with limiting it to new students as in our teachings it talks about policy having to be updated continuously as technology is always changing; perhaps educating about social media is something that needs to be implemented yearly. An easy grade perhaps for some. ;)
-Krystal
Hi Krystal- Interesting information about how many children are on Facebook. I wonder if research is also being done on not just how many children have profiles, but how many children's lives are being documented on Facebook? For example, my cousin has been posting pictures of her two daughters on Facebook since birth. One can literally see them growing up through her account. Now, many of her close realities live far away so these pictures, status updates, video's, etc help them feel close. But I wonder about her privacy settings? How many other people have access to these little girls pictures? We all know that there are child molesters and kidnappers in the world. Is this giving them easier access to do so?
DeleteYou also raise a good point about hosting these seminars yearly,which I think is a good idea. I also know many colleges have first-year seminars courses. Maybe some social media safety should be introduced in those curriculum. Like you said, an easy A!
Hi All. Just saw this on Twitter, and figured it was worth sharing because it relates to our class this week: Penn Admissions Officer Loses Job After Mocking Applicants on Facebook. http://chronicle.com/blogs/ticker/penn-admissions-officer-loses-job-after-mocking-applicants-on-facebook/56281
ReplyDeleteWhat do you all think? Obviously it was inappropriate. But was it free speech (she posted on her personal Facebook page)? Or do you think this was warranted because she breached confidentially policies?
This is a difficult argument. On one hand you can consider the information provided by The National Law Review stipulating employers may prohibit “rants” however if the employee in question is engaging in dialogue with a fellow employee it restricts the employers from punishing (Halpern & Gardner, 2012, para. 2). The article doesn’t outline whether anyone in the admissions department responded to her Facebook post. From an ethical standpoint what this woman did was harsh and blantantly wrong. However all too often in our connected society people tend to believe that what they express on their social sites stays between “friends.” I personally am one who particpates on social sites but I keep myself limited such as making me ‘unsearchable’ and I do not befriend everyone I know. I see often times people are friends with all who they went to school with. I find this extremely odd as I can’t remember one fellow student who got along with everyone in our school yet these individuals open their worlds to these people every day. I woulnd’t be surprised to see that this woman was ‘rated’ out by a fellow “friend.”
DeleteA question for you, do you her freedom of speech was compromised here? I think we all agree that the content she shared on her Facebook wall was unethical but many times freedom of speech arguments surround unethical statements. Freedom of speech reserves us the right to speak freely. Hmmmmmm, interested to hear your thoughts. :)
References
Halpern, S. J., & Gardner, C. H. (2012, December 3). When is Your Company's Social Media Policy an Unfair Labor Practice? Retrieved from National Law Review: http://www.natlawreview.com/article/when-your-company-s-social-media-policy-unfair-labor-practice-recent-nlrb-decisions-
I should not be surprised, but I am always amazed at just how dumb some people can be when I read stories like this. For me it comes down to this: you may have freedom of speech, but you don't have freedom from consequences.
ReplyDelete