home thods via Compfight

With everything you do online, it leaves a digital footprint. It’s not going to simply vanish from the vast internet when you just move your fingertips and delete the post. Therefore, we need to be responsible for our own action. In nowadays where we think we are able to control the world with our fingertips, there are still many unknown and uncertain dangers existing.

I personally think social media is the biggest negative digital footprint producer. The claim it makes of being an open and free platform makes many online users to share and post things that may be considered inappropriate and offensive. For example, according to The Harvard Crimson, at least ten students from Harvard University were caught to be sending each other sexual and obscene memes in a private group chat. Their acceptances were ultimately rescinded from Harvard University (check here for the whole article).

Your digital footprints could be tracked easily, do not ever think a private setting really works. Not saying that you have no freedom on the internet, but we should always be responsible and think before we post. Referring to the picture below, it shows 5 actions we should take to leave positive digital footprints of ours.

Not only social media has a big issue concerning about the appropriateness of the content, it also has privacy leakage issues. In fact, it’s very common to have viruses to hack your Facebook account, sending non-existing youtube video links to all your friends and instantly hacks your friend’s account as soon as they click on it. I have seen many of my friends’ Facebook account to be hacked, and it’s definitely a concern worth paying attention to.

In addition, social media could cause cyber bully issues. As children and teenagers have not been mentally fully grown, they could easily become the target or victim and be hurt. An anonymous user can easily make offensive comments to offend someone, or eventually hack another’s identity. Even the worst, some of your peers would eventually join together and harass you online. Not only would cyber bully issues leave mental scars in teenagers, it could also lead to suicide commitments. For example, according to PureSight, in the US, there have been 13 teenagers in between the age of 13 and 18 who have committed suicide due to cyber bullying issues. Also, according to a CBS News Report on 2010, 42% of youngsters have reported that they have been the victims of cyber bully issues.

kid-josh via Compfight

Last but not least, always maintaining a digital presence on social medias could also decrease your productivity to work on required assignments. As teenagers are still acquiring education, school work should be the first priority, an over-usage of social medias often lead to procrastination, poor time management, and distraction.”It takes discipline not to let social media steal your time”. Students should learn how to manage their time well, and not be addicted to their phones.

Marco Verch via Compfight

While social medias seem to bring numerous negative impacts to our community and lives, it’s not completely harmful. A positive digital presence on social medias enables people who live apart to connect. Secondly, social medias and the internet also makes information easier to be spread, such as evoking about empathy, advocating about a certain topic, and setting up events. Thirdly, the digital world allows you to effortlessly have access to technology and information in an instant of time. However, although this idea seems cool, you should always be careful about the danger it can bring you, including the amount of information you absorb, because too much knowledge could hurt you as well. Lastly, the internet brings people with the same interest together. For example, on Instagram, you can follow food accounts if you’re a food lover too!

In conclusion, your digital footprint defines you, so represent yourself, your school, and your community well. Be careful and responsible for what you do online. Just for a reminder, 100% of transparency online cannot be guaranteed; so, make the best use of technology, the kind of impact it will bring you will be absolutely dependent on your action.

Before you go, check out the video below to refresh your memories about digital citizenship. Have a nice day!

Citation:

1. “The Negative Effect Of Social Media On Society And Individuals.” Smallbusiness.chron.com. N. p., 2017. Web. 27 Aug. 2017.

2. “The Positive Impact Of Social Networking Sites On Society.” MakeUseOf. N. p., 2012. Web. 27 Aug. 2017.

3. “Digital Citizenship.” YouTube. N. p., 2017. Web. 27 Aug. 2017.

4. “Real Life Stories | Puresight | Real Life Stories.” Puresight.com. N. p., 2017. Web. 27 Aug. 2017.

5. Elenikyritsis.files.wordpress.com. N. p., 2017. Web. 27 Aug. 2017.

6. “Alexis Ohanian Quotes.” BrainyQuote. N. p., 2017. Web. 27 Aug. 2017.