Social networking and social media have pros and cons. They offer networking opportunities, but scammers and hackers can exploit them. Social media connects people with similar interests, but it can also be used to deceive and spread disinformation. Personal information shared on these sites can be misused for harassment or violence. Users should take advantage of privacy protections and limit the information outsiders can learn from their profiles.
The pros and cons of social networking and social media are varied and often interlinked. While social networking sites offer networking opportunities, ways to pass on information quickly, as well as ways for old friends and family to stay in touch, they have their drawbacks. Legitimate networking opportunities can be exploited by scammers and hackers, gossip and rumors can spread just as quickly as real news, and stalkers can use social networking to further exploit and harass their victims.
Social media sites are perhaps best known for their ability to connect people who have similar interests but may never have had the opportunity to meet due to geographical, social or time limitations. Perhaps chief among the “pros” of social networking is the ability of “average” people to get to know other people with whom they can share crucial information and develop personal and business friendships. Social networking has proved to be a boon for people with hobe specialized interests, but it also allows people to get acquainted from a safe distance. Unfortunately, some people use social media as a way to deceive a gullible public, whether through outright scams, such as an appeal for money for a non-existent hospital bill, or by using the social network to spread computer viruses or to harvest personal information for use in identity theft.
Many people use networking sites to share news and information with their friends and family. Many social media platforms make it very easy for users to share links to internet based stories, articles, photographs and blog posts. The pros and cons of information on social networks are once again deeply connected: while it is easy for someone to share and spread an important news story, such as that about a natural disaster or a serious health problem, it can be difficult to contain the spread of a story which includes disinformation. Many school bullying experts also acknowledge this problem, as students can easily use these sites as a way to spread viscous rumors about their schoolmates.
It is also possible to misuse information on social networks for the purpose of harassment or violence. For many people, these sites are a wonderful way to stay in touch with family and friends, especially those who live far away. Users often share a large amount of personal information about themselves on these sites and may even use them to log their daily activities. While this can be a great way to maintain relationships, stalkers and other people with bad intentions can use this information to harass and even hurt site users. Social media participants should take advantage of the privacy protections their sites offer and limit the information that outsiders can learn about them from their profiles.
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