Description

Instagram is an extremely popular image-sharing site, but while it can be fun for users to share their creative efforts, assuming the responses are positive, things can change when the tone of the responses changes. Instagram offers a lot of services for users, including filters, stories, opportunities to use personalized bitmojis, and templates for the pictures that are uploaded. Students can use this application to express themselves and to communicate with friends and loved ones, but there are also places for concern when students are putting so much of themselves online.

Warnings

There is always the chance of cyberbullying, especially considering how popular this social media application is with its users. Free commenting is allowed, and so those comments can have painful impacts on the person reading those words because it is so easy to bully with anonymity on the internet. Creativity is great, but younger users must be carefully monitored when they are using this application. Applications that rely heavily on filters and other software to change and “beautify” the images can be damaging for adolescents who have not built confidence up in themselves. All this emphasis on beauty is leading to increased body dysphoria among youth.

Safeguards

The first thing a parent or guardian can do is encourage “counterspeech” or encouraging the student to be direct and helping them to stand up to inappropriate cyberbullying behaviors. To safeguard younger users, consider monitoring what social media accounts are attached to the student’s account and changing the settings to private. Users can also be blocked, abusive comments should be deleted, and inappropriate behaviors should be reported through the application to moderators. For parents and general safety of mind, there are also time-limiting controls available.

Links:

· Instagram

· Instagram Community Safety

· How to Use Instagram: A Beginner’s Guide

· Social Media Apps Parents Should Know About

Description

Snapchat is an immensely popular application right now because it allows the user to create and send messages that are immediately deleted. Unfortunately, thanks to screenshots, the receiver can create a permanent image of what was sent as proof of what was discussed. At its inception, Snapchat was intended for quick conversations and photo sharing. Now users can create stories, send movies, video chat, create avatars, and more. While the application has changed significantly since its inception, it remains a way to send immediate responses in a semi-permanent manner. Students are using Snapchat as a quick way to keep up to date with others without verbalizing their experiences, and so these applications like this play a huge role in teenagers’ lives.

Warnings

Despite teenagers being quite certain that they have nothing to hide from the internet, and their being dangerously unconcerned about their safety and privacy, there is room to be concerned with this application. An age restriction of thirteen is set for this application, but youth can always give the wrong age. Given what a viewer can stumble across in this application, Snapchat is probably better for those who are sixteen or older. There is also the concern about what is sent. While users may think that the picture disappear, that is not true if the receiver chose to screenshot the image (or otherwise save it).

Safeguards

Since it has become clear that promises of pictures disappearing were misleading, Snapchat has put in safeguards to address obvious concerns. Importantly, there is an in-app reporting feature to notify the administrators of inappropriate behaviors. Snapchat has also gone to great lengths to encourage users to be polite, remember that the “snaps” (messages sent through the application) may not disappear, use the privacy settings, only talk to friends, and follow the user guidelines set forth, among many other hints and tips for safety while using Snapchat.

Links:

· Snapchat

· Snapchat Safety Center

· Parents’ Ultimate Guide to Snapchat

· How Does Snapchat Work and What’s the Point?

Description

TikTok is a social media application that allows people to share short videos that they have created. As a renamed version of musical.ly, a lot of the videos center on musical content including synchronized dancing and lip-syncing, but other kinds of videos are available, as well. A user can tag their uploads with hashtags to group them and allow for easier searches, or even browse the uploaded content of other users. TikTok is very popular at the moment and has allowed the users to stream or record their experiences as they happen, and is currently being used as a on the ground news and communication tool for the younger generation.

Warnings

With careful supervision this application can be safe, but with the opportunity for anyone to put up videos there is room for concern. Being a music heavy application adds to the chances that a viewer may come across suggestive language or cussing. Unfortunately, it has been shown that despite being informed of the risks, many social media users are willing to take their chances, especially if the user believes that he has immunity. Students are influenced by the media people they view on applications such as this, and if that person is doing something inappropriate (such as using drugs, suggestive lyrics, etc.), the adolescent may be tempted to copy that behavior, not seeing the consequences in a short video. Also, TikTok is considered a “leaky” application that is prone to identity theft, according to cyber security agencies.

Safeguards

There are things that parents can do to protect their students, however. The safest thing a user can do is make sure to make their account private, as with any social networking account. TikTok itself has precautions in place to discourage people from searching for inappropriate terms such as “sex”. There is also a TikTok setting for children under thirteen that carries child-safe material, but children cannot comment or post, and this feature can be bypassed by a fake birth date. There are also parental controls that can be enabled and allow a guardian to limit screen time or even put in place a restricted mode that can be locked with a pass code.

Links:

· TikTok

· TikTok’s Privacy Policies

· Parents’ Ultimate Guide to TikTok

· NY Times Article on TikTok’s Safety Concerns

Description

Twitter is a popular social media application that allows users to follow celebrities, provides news, keeps the users in touch with current events, and provides a lot of dramatics for both adult and young users. Twitter differentiates itself from other blogging and communication applications by setting a limit on the number of characters one can use in a message (one hundred and forty characters). Twitter is quite broad and can be used by individual people to share their thoughts, and as an advertising engine for famous people and businesses.

Warnings

The biggest issue with Twitter is that it seems to be a popular application to hack. Verified accounts could potentially be being run by scammers and bots, and the reader would never know the difference. There is also the concern with a younger user putting too much of themselves online for others to see. The young are not as concerned about their safety and privacy as they should be and this can lead to people who need to be muted or blocked for your child’s safety and well-being.

Safeguards

There are things that a user can do to keep themselves safe while using Twitter. Use of complicated passwords and configuring privacy settings goes a long way towards keeping things safe. When interacting with others on Twitter, use discretion in communications and do not give out personal information. Do not click on links or befriend people you do not know, and as a parent follow your child on Twitter so that you can see what they are doing on the application. Twitter provides in-application options such as the muting or blocking of people, conversations, hashtags, and specific words. Users can also control what shows up on their timelines, and there are safe search filters built into Twitter.

Links:

· Twitter

· What is Twitter and Why Should You Use It?

· Twitter Safety Tips for Teens and Parents

· Safety at Twitter

Description

YouTube is one of the oldest applications on this list. It is exceedingly popular and most youth are familiar with how to navigate this video sharing and watching program. YouTube has users who have made millions of dollars by recording themselves and uploading those videos for others to like or dislike, and for companies to sponsor. Users have the option to search for videos on whatever they can think of, and when they find a channel they like, they can subscribe and get notifications when that channel puts up more content. YouTube is both entertainment and education available at anyone’s fingertips.

Warnings

YouTube is a huge resource that can come across as overwhelming to parents. Not only can students see videos that may be damaging, but they can also watch “influencers” who, as the nickname implies, have a strong impact on followers and subscribers. Another thing to be concerned about on YouTube is the live-streaming component. Any application that allows someone to live-stream themselves is a potential place for concern for users. These live-streamed videos may include interaction with the viewers (through text), and there is no real way to moderate these videos.

Safeguards

To keep your child safe there are some ways to keep an eye on their interactions with YouTube. First, ask your child what videos they are watching, communication is important. Encourage your child to subscribe to channels so that they do not get caught up in YouTube roulette. Learn more about the creators your student is watching and use parental controls whenever possible. YouTube users are supposed to be thirteen years old (or older), but that is easy to get by if the child gives a different birth date. Within YouTube there are ways to indicate that you are uninterested in each topic or video, or even chances to report questionable content to administrators. Encourage your child to think carefully about the content they are viewing (including the advertisements).

Links:

· YouTube

· Child Safety on YouTube

· Parents’ Ultimate Guide to YouTube

· Latest App Craze: Social Video-Chatting and Live Streaming