MySpace Safety for Military Kids

Straight talk and boundaries

by Andrea Downing Peck

Straight Talk

Justin Patchin, assistant professor of criminal justice at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, coauthored a study showing most underage users of MySpace use the site responsibly.  In his study of 1,500 randomly selected teen profiles, he found 90 percent of kids are not breaking the cardinal rules of Internet safety:  Do not post your full name, home address, school name, phone number or other individually identifiable information.

“Quite surprisingly,” he says, “we found it wasn’t as bad as most people thought.  We found examples of those kinds of things, but it wasn’t as widespread as we expected based on the kind of information we were given by the media.

“If used responsibly, under appropriate guidance, we think the risk of victimization when using MySpace is relatively low,” Patchin adds.

Internet safety experts say parental supervision is key to keeping children safe online.

“The technology gap, hopefully for us, is at the top of the peak where kids know more than their parents do,’’ says Seattle Police Detective David Dunn, a cyber safety expert, “but we are still coming across a tremendous amount of kids who grew up with a computer in the home and parents who are happy to get their emails open at work.”

A bit of knowledge can go a long way toward bridging that gap.  Dunn says parents should learn the basics of instant messaging lingo.  (A quick Internet search will help you decipher the code.)

“If you see an acronym like ‘POS’–Parent Over Shoulder, ask your kid what it means,’’ he says.  “If you see ‘POS,’ ask, ‘What are you doing? Why are you concerned that I’m looking over your shoulder?’ 

Bobbie Eisenstock, a California State University Northridge professor and media education consultant, says many teens are “tech savvy, but not net literate.”  Teens using MySpace, Facebook, Xanga or other social networking sites can unknowingly make their lives an open book.  Eisenstock provides these cyber rules for ensuring kids’ safety online:

• Keep personal information private - Do not give out identifying information or private details about yourself or family.  Do not share passwords with friends.

• Choose a neutral screen name – Make sure screen names are not offensive or sexually suggestive.

• Beware of stranger danger – Do not respond to messages from strangers.  Block content from anyone who interacts improperly.  Never meet an online “friend” offline without a parent present.

• Practice “netiquette” – Do not be rude or mean, spread rumors, forward personal messages meant to be private, assist a bully or provoke flaming, i.e., hostile exchanges.

• Become net literate – Learn to use technology and protect your cyber identity.  Do not post incriminating or illegal opinions or photos.  Download from only trusted sources.  Be cautious about opening emails and attachments.

• Think before you click – Don’t leave a cyber trail that can come back to haunt you.