Is Your Social Network Spying On You?

In an earlier post, I wrote about the dark side of social networking. Too often young girls (pre-teens) are attracted to the idea of being able to chat with their friends and update their status for the world to see. While I must admit, I’m not a big social networking junkie and have been accused of not updating my status on a regular basis which for most is every hour and for others, five minutes blocks; I will concede to this fact.

On the other hand, I have heard the horrors of mostly young girls whose lives and reputations have been bruised and in some cases wanted to end their lives due to a post or photo on a social networking site. The main problem is that people are using social networking sites in the same way we use private e-mail accounts; believing that they are chatting or talking to one person, when in reality they are allowing hundreds and for some, thousands for strangers in on their conversations. Recently, a young girl (about 13 years old) posted that she feels like” killing herself because of a boy.” Apparently, she sent a picture to a boy who posted it on a networking site and she feels betrayed by the actions of the boy and worried by what her friends will think of her?

This is where parents need to be involved and monitor their children’s internet activities. As far as children are concern, privacy does not exist. In my personal opinion, young teens should not be allowed to upload photos on open sites. Who really has 5,000 friends anyway? In all of the cases that I have read about dealing with cyber bullying a photo or group of photos were involved. In some extreme cases, this sort of bullying has been responsible for a number of suicides and school-related assaults. We as adults must caution our teens about their behaviors while on the internet. They must understand that once that information is uploaded, its their forever, not just a few days or weeks.

As an HR professional and motivational speaker, I have heard the sad accounts of individuals being disciplined, terminated or looked over for promotions because of their presence on social networking sites. In one case, a person posted that she was hoping that her place of employment go out of business, and went on to defame her employer; when it was reported to her employer by a fellow employee- guess what happen? Her prayers were answered, she was “closed” out of a great job.

What’s the point? Be careful what you post on social networking sites, it may leave you without a job, promotion, and or future opportunities. I am amazed at the number of college students who will tell me that they want to work in corporate America or law enforcement, but when you checkout their Profile page- they are showing profane hand gestures and not representing themselves in a positive light. One young man, even admitted to a crime in a post.

As always, these are my thoughts, if you agree or disagree let’s create a discussion. Visit me on my website at www.lymanmontgomery.com.