Social Media Support
Social Networking – Being Safe and Sensible
Millions of people all over the world use social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to meet, chat and message each other online. But how safe is it to share personal information like this and how can you protect your privacy?
Whether you are using a networking site or just chatting on a forum, the chances are you are putting personal information online. Once it’s out there you’re unlikely to be able to control what happens to it. This could pose a risk to your privacy or even your personal safety.
So before you create a profile, post a picture or tell the online world what you’ve been doing, think about how to make sure you’re safe online.
Keep safe by being careful not to give out personal information, such as your full name, e-mail address, phone number, home address, photos or school name – either to people you are chatting with online or by posting it online where other people can see it.
Meeting someone you have only been in touch with online can be dangerous. Only do so with your parents’ or carers’ permission and even then only when they can be present.
Accepting e-mails, IM messages, or opening files, pictures or texts from people you don’t know or trust can lead to problems – they may contain viruses or nasty messages!
Information you find on the internet may not be true, or someone online may be lying about who they are.
Tell your parent, carer or a trusted adult if someone or something makes you feel uncomfortable or worried, or if you or someone you know is being bullied online.
If something starts to spoil your enjoyment – unwanted attention, offensive comments – report it.
Above all, learn how the sites you use work and use them safely! Happy networking!
Social Networking – A Guide For Parents
Children and young people need to behave safely and responsibly. When using digital communications, pupils should develop an understanding of safe practices and follow them.
For example, they should be cautious about sharing personal information and viewing digital images. They should also recognize the need to show respect towards others.
Stay positive about social networking sites – try to strike a balance between educating children and young people to behave safely and trusting them to get on with it.
Privacy
Make sure that children know how to protect themselves on social networking sites through the tools provided. It’s important to discuss the value of privacy with children. Encourage your child to keep their passwords private and work with them to check the privacy settings on their account which limit how much of their information can be seen by others – for example, encourage your child to change their settings to private so that only people they allow can see what they post and comment on their space, rather than public which leaves their site open to be viewed by anyone.
Photographs
It’s natural that children will want to include a photo on their site or profile, but help them think about the implications of posting photos and what is suitable. It is important to think about the type of picture and the kind of attention it might attract, the information it could divulge and who could see it. Suggest that your child ask permission of other people in the images that they post. Also, be aware that photos can be easily copied, changed, shared, used elsewhere, and can potentially stay online forever. One question to ask your child is “would they want a future employer seeing this photo?”
Posting
The ability to interact with this media and comment on other people’s sites is part of what makes these sites so attractive. However, make sure you help your child to think before they post. Set some ground rules about what is and isn’t OK to say in a blog or profile. This relates to what the child says about others as much as about themselves. What starts off as a joke or gossip can quickly escalate to cause real pain which cannot be taken back.
Reporting Unwanted or Offensive Posts
Step 1: Write to the place (like the website) that holds the information about you, and ask them to remove or correct it. You can use email. Keep a copy of whatever you send, and write down the date you sent it.
Step 2: If that doesn’t work, or you don’t get a response after 28 days, you can call the Information Commissioner’s Office on 0303 123 1113. If someone has broken the rules, they may be able to investigate on your behalf.
Whether it be Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or Snapchat (or any other social media platform for that matter), be vigilant with regards to your own safety. Make sure to use all of the security settings available to you, to protect your information and images from outside sources. This could be through using the ‘private profile’ setting on Twitter & Instagram, or using the ‘Friends Only’ filter on Facebook.
For more advice, please visit the following website:- http://ceop.police.uk
The Communications Act - 2003
Posting online could be breaking the law. The Communications Act states:
1) A person is guilty of an offence if he -
a) sends by means of a public electronic communications network a message or other matter that is grossly offensive or of an indecent, obscene or menacing character; or causes any such message or
b) causes any such message or matter to be so sent.
2) A person is guilty of an offence if, for the purpose of causing
annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety to another, he -
a) sends by means of a public electronic communications network, a message that he knows to be false; or
b) causes such a message to be sent; or
c) persistently makes use of a public electronic communications network.
3) A person guilty of an offence under this section shall be liable, on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale, or to both.