Want a job? Scholarship? Watch what you post! This article written by Andrea Gordon for the Toronto Star provides a wealth of information for the whole family on the potential perils of online activity and sharing.
A study produced by Pew Internet & American Life Project found 93 percent of kids ages 12 to 17 used the internet and of those, two thirds are involved in at least one type of content creation through Web pages, blogs or social networking. Another article, Teacher’s flock to Facebook to be where the kids are, says Canada is one of the fastest growing Facebook markets in the world with more than 3 million users.
Unfortunately, many teens are not fully aware, or simply don’t care about the ramifications that can result from the personal material they post. And that much of the information they post is accessible to parents, police, professors, predators, employers and the media. It may be fun today but could the information they post themselves or what is posted by their friends put their reputations at risk? One question teens need to ask themselves is, “Are you creating an image of yourself that you will be proud of in 5 or 10 years?”
This article is worth the read providing lots of information, additional resources and important tips for teens to protect their online reputation.
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