We wanted to take a minute here at the Reputation.com Blog to give a shout-out to Brad Karsh, the President of of JobBound and JB Training Solutions, for mentioning Reputation.com in his most recent “Ask Brad” column at AdAge. In the column, Brad answers the question, “What do you do when you get busted by someone else’s online discretion?”
Despite your best efforts to keep your name clean online, sometimes other people in your life can accidentally muck things up. Whether it is your friend posting pictures of a party you attended, or your mother asking about your job search (while you’re still employed), it’s not always your mistakes that can hurt your online reputation. Brad details three common examples and a few different methods to help mitigate the damage. Check out his advice here.
Here at Reputation.com, The Onion has a special place in our hearts. They have an amazing ability to capture current events in perfect satire. The Google Opt-Out Village may be a thing of fiction, but your online privacy shouldn’t be! MyPrivacy, MyReputation and MyEdge are there to protect you!
According to a recent study from San Francisco-based Common Sense Media, slightly more than more than 1 out of every 10 teenagers has posted a nude or seminude picture of themselves or others online. And that’s not all. As detailed in an article for the San Francisco Chronicle, the study revealed a wealth of additional information about teen Internet habits, including how long they’re online, where they go when they’re online, and what they do when they’re online. Here’s a breakdown of the numbers.
Teen social networking by the numbers
51 Percentage of teens who check their sites more than once a day.
22 Percentage who check their sites more than 10 times a day.
39 Percentage who have posted something they later regretted.
37 Percentage who have used the sites to make fun of other students.
25 Percentage who have created a profile with a false identity.
24 Percentage who have hacked into someone else’s social networking account.
13 Percentage who have posted nude or seminude pictures or videos of themselves or others online.
Last week, Noah Lang shared some terrific insights into Reputation.com’s ongoing efforts to protect children from the dangers of the Internet. In conjunction with the Internet Keep Safe Coalition (iKeepSafe), Reputation.com has helped countless parents, teachers, and counselors learn more about Internet privacy, cyberbullying, and other significant safety issues.
While it is disheartening that stories like the one in the Chronicle continue to pop up, it is not the end of the world. Using a combination of common sense and technology, parents can help make sure their children aren’t getting into trouble online. It is imperative that parents take an active role in helping their children understand the Internet is not as private as they think. One mistake online can become a serious impediment to a teen’s efforts to get into college, find a job, and more. As with all things, prevention begins with education.
Reputation.com has been working with the Internet Keep Safe Coalition (iKeepSafe), a non-profit that works for the health and safety of youth online, to create resources that help guidance counselors educate kids in the US about how their online reputations can keep them safe, and help (rather than harm) their ability to get into college — Download Reputation.com’s Guide to keeping your kids safe online today!
iKeepSafe launched Project PRO (Privacy & Online Reputation) at this summer’s American School Counselors Association annual meeting in Dallas, TX. I’d like to send a special thank you to our reputation agents who contributed their expertise in creating the booklet, DVD and online materials (http://www.ikeepsafe.org/ASCA) that have now been distributed to educators nationwide. Marsali Hancock, President of iKeepSafe, on the launch of Project PRO:
“What youth post online today directly impacts their future academic and employment opportunities. Reputation.com has worked closely with iKeepSafe to develop content for school counselors that teaches students how to protect their privacy online, and help students create an online reputation that is an asset rather than a liability. We are grateful for Reputation.com’s support and for sharing their expertise about managing and building an online reputation that opens doors to future opportunities, rather than eliminating them.”
Concerned parents can also find helpful tips in these materials for ensuring the safety of their kids online, and try MyChild to combat the spread of potentially harmful information about their kids online. As always, we here at Reputation.com recommend that you keep current with technology, keep communicating with your kids about what they’re doing online, and keep checking on their Internet activity. With a great online reputation, the sky is the limit for your kids!
Reputation.com and iKeepSafe’s 3 Key Tips for Parents:
1. Keep Current with Technology: Talk to teachers about what forms of Internet safety tools they implement in computer labs and technology classes, consider these safety tools for home use, and stay up-to-date on the capabilities of any mobile devices your child may have.
2. Keep Communicating with Your Kids: Find out who your child talks to online, educate your kids about the permanence of any “digital footprints” they leave behind, limit the use of social networks, and make it a habit to engage your kids in critical conversation—the more you talk to your kids about their online usage, the more they will learn to use digital products in a safe and healthy manner.
3. Keep Checking Your Kid’s Internet Activity: Keep computers in a central public location, check your child’s browsing histories, and limit your child’s computer time—there’s a whole world of outdoor and offline activities where they should be involved!
Here at Reputation.com, we are committed to helping individuals protect and defend their good names online. To this end, we are constantly seeking to improve our products and educate the world about the importance of Internet privacy and Online Reputation Management. Recently, Mr. Brian Merritt raised an interesting question about Reputation.com on LinkedIn. Since it was posted yesterday, Brian’s question, which relates to our marketing efforts, has generated some welcome feedback, including a response from Reputation.com COO, Owen Tripp. To see the discussion, follow this link.
As the Internet continues to evolve, so to do the challenges our clients face everyday. In order to solve these problems, it is important for all of us in the Internet industry to engage in an open and intelligent dialogue about the future of web technology. As such, we encourage you to join the dialogue begun by Mr. Merrit on LinkedIn, and, furthermore, to engage Reputation.com through other channels as well. If you’re on Facebook, make sure to check out the Reputation.com Fan Page. You can also find Reputation.com on Twitter.
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