Like, share, repost, tag, and follow are sufficiently generic words that are used while using social media. Unfortunately, terms like hacking, leaks, stalking and mental health have also become standard terms used when using social media apps like Instagram or TikTok.
It can be fun to share glimpses of our lives online, but sometimes we tend to overlook the real dangers that can accompany this.
Keeping Your Data Safe Online
We reveal so much of ourselves on the web, but there may be times when we overshare without even realizing it. So, how can you keep your information safe online? Here are a few steps to take to ensure you aren’t inadvertently exposing your personal data.
- Review your app settings: Did you know that the majority of social media apps allow you to select who, and what can access certain parts of your device? Sometimes, apps ask to use your email, contacts, photo library, microphone, etc. Some apps might even ask to store the data they use throughout your phone. So, the next time you download yet another app, make sure you take a minute to read what it “requires” access to before clicking “accept.”
- Limit what you post with details on your social media: People online will search your social media as a way of identifying you or even attempting to impersonate you. To protect your safety online, avoid listing any personal information such as your full name, age, email address, and phone number.
- Turn off your location: Again, make sure you’ve checked in the settings of your app that your location is not being recorded. Online stalkers may use the information you are providing to see what your patterns are and, in some cases, track down your actual location.
- Do not open spam: Trust your instinct. Do not respond to a message from a stranger online, just delete it. Report and block account(s) to the platform if the spamming continues.
- Keep your login or passwords to yourself: Just like your personal information, do not share your login and passwords. Unless the information is required to sign into your social media, no one else needs to know it but you. Ensure that the passwords you use are complicated, and do not use your name, and your date of birth.
- Anti-virus software: Though often, we get careless and click on spam DMS or emails. Keep hackers at bay by securing your accounts and devices with anti-virus software.
Are Your Kids Safe Using Social Media?
Setting boundaries such as limiting screentime and reviewing platform settingss for impressionable children and teenagers can help reduce the following:
- Poor mental health: A study revealed that teenagers spending over three hours a day on social media were twice as likely to suffer from poor mental health, such as depression and anxiety.
- Content exposure: Children or adolescents exposed to extreme, inappropriate, and harmful content are at increased risk of engaging in self-harm and committing suicide.
- Body dysmorphia: Consuming certain online content can cause children to form warped perceptions of their body image. An online survey found that 46% of kids aged 13–17 felt worse about themselves because of social media.
- Overuse and addictive social media use: Algorithm promote scrolling behavior in kids for longer periods than you might imagine which can contribute to overuse of social media Scrolling too much, however, can interfere with important healthy behaviors and can even lead to behavioral dysregulation.
Unsafe Dangerous Social Media Challenges
One recent challenge circulating on social media urged people to cook chicken in a mixture of acetaminophen, dextromethorphan and doxylamine — the active ingredients in NyQuil and other common over-the-counter cough and cold products.
“Boiling a medication can make it much more concentrated and change its properties in other ways,” officials from the Food and Drug Administration said.
“Even if you are not eating the chicken, cooking it will expose you to its vapors, which could carry high levels of these drugs into your body. It can also damage your lungs.”
The agency also highlighted a TikTok challenge that dares users to hallucinate by taking high doses of the over-the-counter antihistamine diphenhydramine.
Dubbed the “Benadryl Challenge,” it references reports the FDA received of teens winding up in hospital emergency rooms or dying following participation.
Social Media Addiction Litigation
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