Nearly everyone these days is on Facebook. Whether it’s for business or social purposes, Facebook has proved a very useful tool for networking. With so many obvious benefits apparent to the average user, the risks and drawbacks are often overlooked. An article by Emily Bazelon published by the New York Times discusses how Facebook can be putting the world’s youth at risk. This article makes its readers think about what Facebook is doing to us with, or without, our knowledge.
I, personally, am an avid Facebook user, as I’m sure most teenagers are. I love the feeling of being connected with all of my friends nearly all the time. I also use it as a place to share my thoughts, pictures, and experiences with the world. Everybody that uses Facebook on a regular basis knows that great feeling when they log on and find their friends have messaged them, posted on their wall, or liked something they have posted. Facebook users feel more connected to their world and their friends than previous generations. Facebook is also a great tool for staying touch with friends who have never lived close or have just moved away. I met a ton of wonderful people at the National Young Leaders Conference in Washington, D.C. last year and, thanks to Facebook, I still talk to many of them.
Facebook is also useful from a business standpoint. I know many small business owners, as well as larger companies, that use Facebook in order to stay connected to their customers. My favorite little store, owned by family friend, uses their Facebook page to make announcements about drawings, sales, and new merchandise. Larger companies use their Facebook pages in a similar way, informing customers of new items just released, as well as about different events their company is affiliated with. This not only increases their sales, but it allows Facebook users to know what is happening in their communities.
As beneficial as Facebook seems to be, it also comes with risks. When you sign up for Facebook, you are giving them permission to have and use the information you put on your page. You are also, whether you know it or not, making it possible for their advertisers to target you specifically. As Emily Bazelon’s article, “Why Facebook is After Your Kids”, points out, “What is clear is that Facebook thinks it needs access to kids’ lives in order to continue to dominate its industry.” Facebook is dependent on the information supplied by kids in order to stay on top. This means that they can get to any information you have on the site. In that sense, even if your page is set to “private” so only your friends, or friends of your friends, can see it, it really isn’t private. There are ways for just about anyone to view, and use, your information.
With so many benefits, and an almost equal amount of risks, people need to think about what they are putting on Facebook, or any other website for that matter. Even after reading Bazelon’s article, I’m still going to use Facebook just as much as I always have. However, reading that article and knowing just how public even “private” information on Facebook is, I am definitely going to be more careful about what I post and the information I make available. While you shouldn’t let the risks completely scare you away from social networking, you should always have them in mind when you are posting, commenting, liking, or poking on Facebook.
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