There is a big difference in someone’s cyber identity and their real-world identity. One of the most obvious differences includes true personality. Cyber identity is just how someone wants to be portrayed in the public eye or how they want to be known to others. On the other hand, real-world identity is who the person is in reality which also includes all of their characteristics that might not be acknowledged on networking pages. People are told consistently to be careful while online in general, but they should be extra careful while examining and posting things to networking pages.
The word harmful might come to mind when thinking of networking pages. Many of the devastating stories heard from the media always make parents and guardians a little edgy. Young children are always getting advice from their elders not to talk to strangers, but once they are older this advice is only regarded to a certain extent. Networking pages are sort of like the entire world population in one area so people have to know a little about them in order to stay safe. Granneman states that “We can sure try to educate kids and parents and schools about MySpace, but I’m just not certain how effective we’re ever going to be. (MySpace) Meaning now-a-days everyone has their own mind set, and they basically do what they want to do.
According to the article MySpace Vows to Protect Kids, MySpace officials will not allow sexual predators, or anyone for that matter, to improperly use this particular networking system. (Miners) So this should put guardians at ease, but to be rational about this, monitoring everyone with a profile seems to be close to impossible. One way the officials approached this is by having a restriction on the age; only individuals over the age of fourteen are permitted to maintain a profile. These officials need to be more sensible about this matter because many of the younger kids are smart enough to know how to get around this preliminary block. Knowing that MySpace is “adding around 270,000 new users each day”, it is pretty safe to say that some of these newcomers are younger than fourteen years old, and some may be in the category of “bad” people. (MySpace)
If the officials are monitoring the members so closely, then why can an undercover FBI agent pose as a teenager and arrest dozens of predators for falling into her traps? (Sher) It is because not everyone is being observed thoroughly. There are tragedies that occur from carelessness or naiveté on networking systems. Some of them consist of sexually abused adolescents and others are murders. One story that was unlike others and stood out is when a thirteen year old female committed suicide because her online boyfriend insulted and then dumped her. The catch was her so called “boyfriend” wasn’t actually a male; in fact the “boyfriend” was a mother of one of her friends that lived down the street. (Tiemann) Unexpected things can occur from these hidden dangers is what this demonstrates.
All of this ties in with the fact that anyone with a profile can post falsifying information. Checking out new profiles can be interesting, but it is just not the same as holding a conversation with someone face-to-face. In this case, it is easier to decipher what is true and what is not true by their voice and facial expressions. There are only words, pictures, and videos on profiles so other users may view something that is not true. There are various categories displayed on a profile that can describe that individual in a personal and insightful manner including sections such as “about me”, “ethnicity”, “schools attended”, “interests”, and “orientation.” The “about me” section is where most of the general information is located such as name, birth date, and future plans. These categories are supposed to give the viewer a better idea of the person’s characteristics and personality.
I thoroughly looked at a friend’s profile and received the impression that ethnicity is one of the more significant categories because it is the most common way she is perceived by others on and off line. Being that MySpace allows you to post your race and Facebook does not give that pleasure this is one difference in the two major networking systems. She described herself as African American, but a viewer may not exactly be able to tell that from her appearance in her pictures. She also listed some of her like and dislikes under the “interest” category, and some of her hobbies, favorite books, movies, and things to do. What if this was all a hoax, though? What if this female teenager was actually a middle aged man who has a record of being a sexual offender?
There is not a sure fire way to make sure people are who they say they are on networking pages. Therefore, the phrase “what you see may not be what you get” can definitely be applied when viewing online profiles. Some individuals just might stretch the truth to seem more appealing to others or to be liked by many people. For example, a nerd at school may become an extremely cool person while online, and no one would ever discover this unless they decide to meet somewhere offline. When one or the other request to meet, that is exactly where all the worries should begin.
Although there are plenty of negatives to networking pages, there are coupled with some positives. Therefore banning these favorable online activities is not the answer. (MySpace) Something major would have to be put into action to solve this problem of falsified information being posted as the truth. Things can happen all because of one simple lie, and everyone should understand that fact. Aspects like place of origin, age, religion, and interests all have a great impact on how someone is represented in society. In contrast, these same exact features can make up someone who does not exist in reality but does in the virtual world. Until the problem is resolved, those who manage a networking page will just have to be cautious of others.
Works Cited
Miners, Zach. "MySpace Vows to Protect Kids Better." District Administration 44.4 (02 Mar. 2008): 12-12. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Wilson Library, Chapel Hill, NC. 10 Feb. 2009
MySpace Statistics and Adult Responses. 8 July 2006. Moving at the Speed of Creativity. 10 Feb. 2009 http://www.speedofcreativity.org/2006/07/08/myspace-statistics-and-adult-responses/.
Sher, Julian. "The not-so-long arm of the law." USA Today (n.d.). Academic Search Premier. EBSCO.Wilson Library, Chapel Hill, NC. 10 Feb. 2009
http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspxdirect=true&db=aph&AN=J0E292026400207&site=ehost-live.
Tiemann, Amy. MySpace Tragedy and 'helicopter Parenting'. 1 Dec. 2007. CNET News. 10 Feb. 2009
Tiemann, Amy. MySpace Tragedy and 'helicopter Parenting'. 1 Dec. 2007. CNET News. 10 Feb. 2009
I agree with your web blog about how no one can ever tell whether or not someone through the internet is real or not. Your blog kind of ties in with mines about identity theft and I also mentioned that networking sites have advantages and disadvantages. Although these sites should take more measures to help to sex predators and young people from making profiles, I think this would be a very hard task. Simply because there is no way to prove that this person is really the right age and no one is going to take the time out to look up a name to see if they have records of being a predator. It's sad but it is true.
ReplyDeleteWhat you have stated is frighteningly true. It is way too easy for someone to falsify information about themselves online. In addition, it is even more difficult to detect the people that have manipulated their identity. Like you mentioned, this is very dangerous and something needs to be done to alleviate the problem. Stronger network restrictions should resolve this problem for at least social networking websites. I believe the restrictions would make it more difficult for sexual predators to fool people and ultimately decrease the number of crimes.
ReplyDeleteIt is very easy for someone to steal your identity on websites. Like I said in class, my man Larry Drew had his identity stolen on Facebook and Myspace. It was easy for someone to do this. All they had to do was go on the Internet and find some of his pictures and pretend to be him. WIth the way these websites are set up, its easy to make a fake profile of someone.
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