You aren’t the only one lurking yourself!

In Totally Wired, I share an anecdote of a mom who saw that her teen daughter had posted a Corona ad on her MySpace page. The mom talked to her daughter about who might see that ad (like the parents of the kids she would be in charge of as a camp counselor) as a way to make the point that her MySpace is public. Now that loads of teens have moved over to Facebook and are under the impression that it’s “more private,” (see my recent post on this), they love sending each other virtual beers. I’m sure there will be virtual pot leaves soon if there aren’t already.My guess is that most teens sending and receiving virtual beers are probably drinking real ones at parties or at bars using fake i.d.s. If not, they think it’s a way to make them seem cooler to people who are. I don’t think anyone is going to not be hired for having virtual beer on their Facebook profile, but like anything you put up, it does say something about you. Separate from the conversations about drugs and alcohol you should be having with teens, I think it’s worth talking to them to make sure they understand Facebook’s privacy loopholes and are aware of what they are saying about themselves when they decide to give or receive virtual beer or post images of alcohol or pot on MySpace.

Nobody Cards For Beer 

It’s SOOOOOOOOOO funny that Anastasia (from ypulse & Totally Wired) posted this. 

Last week I was speaking with a friend about facebook and how U16 kids aren’t necessarily on there in droves yet (still in the myspace for the most part), and I got to thinking about the Happy Hour applications and the Booze Mail.  I’ve actually found myself forgetting the fact that the JPGs are indeed refering to alcoholic beverages not appropriate to the wee ones under 21.  And yet, I’m sure there are loads of high school kids jumping (pre college, as most of the kids I’ve talked to joining facebook are in their senior year/freshman year) into the fbook and discovering the booze-a-licious atmosphere.  Dangerous, Naughty, Illegal?  They’re JPGs, and whether or not kids really are drinking IRL, or looking up to those who drink… well, let’s just say kids aren’t thinking about the reprecautions (do they ever? Oh bless).  It’s like sticking a sticker to your friends locker, or getting a horribly ugly Tweety Bird lick’n’stick tattoo on your shoulder. 

As Anastasia pointed out– this is just another occasion of kids forgetting about Lurkers.  It’s like having a dirty room.  Sure mom will get after you, and dad would be disappointed… but really it’s just you and your friends who have to sit in the stink/garbage-infested room, right?  Well… now image your dirty bedroom in the big picture windows of every major store in every country… that’s how easy it is for people to peer into your life online.  Big. Picture. Windows. At stores.  Passersby, interested peepers, your mom, your girlfriend, boyfriend, school advisor, college recruiter.  Any, every, nobody.  All of the above. 

So when you open a little spot for yourself online and you think it’s private… remember: nothing for free is ever private, and even when you pay– unless it’s a vaulted safe… good luck.  Web is a world wide playground.  Hacks, Macs, and Smacks are everywhere.  Just because they don’t know you doesn’t mean they’re not going to look at your page, even if but for a second.  Why would anyone want to look at a car accident?  Dunno– but it always causes gapers block, doesn’t it? 

Again, open that little spot for yourself online knowing full well that whatever you post on it can be seen by just about anyone (no matter how much you try to safe guard it). 

So that jpg of a scotch barrel seems like a funny gift to send to your prom date?  Think again and good luck explaining it to your parents who now believe that you’re next step would best be to Betty Ford, regardless of your Shirley Temple-habits.

Web Identity Tips.

Here are some simple tips to make sure you’re not posting TMI for identity thieves:

 

Limit the amount of personal information you post on your bog or profile. While you’re under 18, don’t post your full first and last name on your blog or social networking profile – make up a fun nickname or pseudonym to use instead. Never post your social security number, driver’s license number (if you have one!), cell phone number or home address.

 

Be careful what you blog. If your blog is public, don’t post stuff like my whole family is going on vacation for two weeks – a clever criminal can try to figure out where you live and take advantage of your family being gone, raid your mailbox and find all sorts of personal information.

 

Watch out for email scams or “phishing.” If you still check your old fashioned web email account, be very careful of spammers who send emails asking you for money or any other personal information. Don’t click on any email attachments unless you know who sent them. Just hit delete. 

 

Be wary of quizzes or other online surveys that ask you to enter lots of personal information.

 

Make sure any site you have to register to join is secure and legit. Be weary of contest sites advertised through pop-ups or associated with any brand or company you are not familiar with. If you’re shopping online, most likely you have to use your parent’s credit card, so make sure they check out the site before you enter in their information.

Identity Theft: Another Reason You Shouldn’t Share TMI Online by Anastasia Goodstein

 

Okay: A) Read Anastasia’s article & reasonings in the above mentioned link.  She is clearly brilliant.  B) If you are working with kids/tweens/teens… and you need to help intro the idea of identity & online protection, this is what I’ve kinda come up with…

 

The Game…. GUESS WHO?

What kids have trouble understanding is that slight information, the kind that doesn’t seem obvious, is the kind to keep in mind. 

 

There are three levels of identity info (at least in my mind):

1. Heavy hitters… Obvious stuff: First name, last name, email, home address, phone number

 

But what needs to be mentioned too are: 

2. Semi-obvious: School, parents names, team name (and don’t forget they tend to add their jersey numbers as well), IM NAMES(!), blogs, various sites & online presence, and personal account information (you have no idea how many kids leave their Club Penguin account info in my comments section for one of my old CP posts)

 

3.  Unique characteristics, parents jobs, school mascott, event locations (“I’m going to Disney World this weekend with my six brothers. We all have red hair and my Dad is in a wheelchair”), etc.

 

Some pieces of information shared do indeed seem innocent enough.  But it’s always good to prep kids on the full side of indentity & online life.  Tater Tot McGee joins a site, makes psuedo-friends online, and says things like “Our mascott is a badger.  It’s on my warmest sweatshirt”, the next week they mention “I’m going to a Bears football game with my dad this weekend!”, and “I just died my hair pink for the holidays!” < That can make Tater Tot McGee quite identifiable.

 

Okay, granted I’m being extreme and a safety-zealot about the info collection… but the point is, if you want to get it across to kids that safety isn’t a joke sometimes you have to be straight up serious with them.  Give ‘em respect by giving them the facts and the fine details. 

 

Play “Guess Who?” with the tater tots.  Help make the identification process clearer in a game-like format, then explain to them about identity… connect the dots between the two.

 

Anyway, that’s just a tip.  I’ve used it a handful of times now and it works beautifully.  Opens kids eyes a bit, helps them realize how simple it is to identify someone.