What is a "Social Network" Potential Issues Some Social Networks

What is a "Social Network"

A social network is a site that has features designed to help people connect to each other in a variety of ways, on some level.  Each social network has it's primary intended audience and focus, and tends to develop a bit of a "culture" and look.  All of these networks share certain chracteristics, and there are similar concerns regarding all of them.  However, some networks are better than others and are less like to be a source of trouble, while others are far worse than others.

The key difference between social networks and other types of sites is that the social network attemtps to provide many different forms of interaction in one place, under the control of each member.  Of course, many of the features don't work as well or are not as full featured as similar functions provided by specialized or "stand alone" products. But, for many people the convenience of having all of these forms of interaction in one place, using one interface makes the tradeoff worthwhile. Others use social networks in conjunction with other means of communication.  Social networking sites generally have the advanage of providing a greater variety of ways to link many different people, each with his own space, almost like linking to many personal sites, but more easily done.

Potential Issues

Keep in mind that all of the general issues that apply to the rest of the internet apply to social networks. This page is only intended to highlight some of these issues as they apply to this type of site, but please realize that just because I may not mention a particular issue on this page, it does not mean that the issue is not relevant.

More importantly, all of the issues mentioned here really apply to the internet in general. But, I want to highlight how they play out in this type of environment, and what can be done, should you choose to use, or allow your child(ren) to use, a social network. As I noted above, some social networks are better than others. So, if you do make that choice, your shoulf make sure to choose the right netowkr(s). And, take precautions (as with everything else.)

Use By Predators Of All Sorts

Because people, especially young people, tend to post so much information about themselves, and the information also tends to be in a very searchable format, predators often use these sites to find potential victims. Realize that although the highest profile cases are those who victimize and brutalize young people, this is not the only problem. There are fraudsters and others who have their own aims. Fraud and ther types of abuse may not be quite as dangerous as the first type mentioned, but, nevertheless something to be very way of.  Besides all the normal rules (eg if something sounds too good to be true; don't spend time with someone you don't know "off line"; don't hesitate to get help if someone scares you) there are some other simple things you can do to limit exposure. Firstly, limit the searchable information you post about yourself. Make your profile as private as the site will allow, so that what is seen by anyone you didn't "let in" is limited. Limit the pictures you post.

Repercussions if the "wrong" person sees material

Material on the internet is public, and that most definitely includes social networks. That means that if you don't want someone to see something, you should not post it on your network. That's true even if the person you are worried about is not linked to you, because those people may be linked to people you are linked to, and may be able to see some things, although not as much as people who are linked to you. Employers are increasingly looking at social networking sites, and I hear that many shadchanim do as well - even the most frum ones. Like a blog, it is a mistake to treat your social network site as a diary, unless you don't mind the world reading your diary. Anything that you think you might want to keep private one day should stay off the site.

Loss of control over what others do with material posted

Even if only real friends are linked to your social networking page, you lose a certain amount of control over what you post. Friendships go sour, and even when they don't people don't always have the best judgement. And, even people with generally good judgement may not realize the repercussions to you, of spreading certain information or pictures. So, don't post anything that you would be horrified to find your friend had passed on to someone else. In addition, on many social networking sites, if you delete your "profile" or account, they still keep that information for anywhere from 6 months to almost forever, and it's often still visible to the world. The best way to get around this is to blank out anything at all you may have posted in your profile and on your site, and then delete the profile, because then they will generally only have the skeleton profile available. Lastly, many social networking sites allow applications to be added to your page. These applications are often fund, cute or even useful. However, it is important to realize that in most cases, putting those applications on your profile allows the person (or company) some access to your information. Different networks, and different applications, have different levels of access, but there is almost always some level of access. So, be very cautious about what you put on your page, to minimize anyone else's ability to see and use your information.

Inappropriate content

The content on social networking sites is not necessarily worse than other sites. The biggest problem is that, by their nature, these sites are designed to make people feel at home, which lowers ones guard and may make someone a bit more accepting of such material. Also, because so much content is user generated, there is a far greater possibility, on many sites, of coming across something that does not really match the over all tone of the site, in a bad way. The best way to deal with this is to be very cautious about who one links to, and always realize that unless you really know the person you are linking to, there is a chance that something will come up.  The more businesslike a site is, the less likely this is to happen, but there are no guarantees.

Some Social Networks

I will not provide links to the networks I list, as I don't beleive that there is any utility - certainy none related to the purpose of this site.  This list is far from exhaustive, and is only intended to give some idea of the variety of such sites and the range of environments they provide.

• LinkedIn - main focus is on business relationships. Often used as a way to find business contacts
• MySpace - targeted at teens and people in entertainment and music areas. The look and design matches the target audience well, in my opinion. 
• FaceBook - I've heard it described as "MySpace with class."  Originally targeted to students, it's been opened up, and is used by some businesses and organizations.
• Bebo - In their own words "Bebo is a social media network where friends share their lives and explore great entertainment" From what I can see, the entertainment focus is high.
• Flixter - Their motto could be "Everything Movies" Need I say more?
• Friendster - Their official focus on helping people stay connected. The look is not too bad, but they do have member pictures all over the place, and the standards would not pass in a business.
• Gossipreport.com - I think the name says it all.