Instagram is a popular social media website that is primarily about photos. People post selfies, photos of what they had for dinner, vacation photos, and whatever else they want to share online. What many parents don’t realize is that teens and tweens are sharing a lot more than photos on Instagram!
The terms of service at Instagram state: “You must be at least 13 years old to use the Service”. It is possible for a teenager to simply make their own Instagram account without asking their parent for permission to do so first. Some parents will make an Instagram account for their tween to use. Doing so isn’t quite what was intended by the terms of service.
Many parents make it a practice to periodically monitor their teens and tweens social media accounts. On Instagram, parents typically look at the photos that their kid posted. Parents may find photos of selfies, or of their child with a group of friends. There will likely be photos of sunsets, flowers, and other random stuff that their child thought was interesting.
Smart parents will also think to look at the photos of whatever Instagram accounts their teen or tween has connected with. If all the photos there are sunsets, selfies, and silliness, then a parent may presume that everything is fine.
It turns out that looking at the content of the photos is not enough. Parents really need to take the time to read the comments that people leave on the photos. Conversations can take place entirely within the comment section. This is where some teens and tweens are sharing too much personal information.
You may discover that your teen or tween has been posting his or her school email address in the comment section. Others may have posted the name they are using on other forms of social media such as Ask.fm or Kik (in other words, the ones that many parents don’t know about). Some go so far as to post their phone numbers into the comment section.
In other words, the comments are more than a place for someone to compliment a nice photo. Young people are using the comment sections on Instagram as a way to connect with each other outside of Instagram. They simply don’t understand that this could lead to dangerous situations.
Take the time to talk with your teen or tween about internet safety. Point out that there is no way to know, for certain, who an online stranger really is. They might end up taking with an adult who was pretending to be a teenager. Now is a good time discuss what an internet predator is and how to avoid them. Teach your child why it is a bad idea to post their phone number in a comment section where everyone can see it.
Image by Jason Howie on Flickr.
Related Articles at Families.com:
* Parenting in a Social Media World
* Teaching Teenagers About the Dangers of Internet Predators