Social Media And Student Privacy

The use of social media by colleges and employers may increase as time goes on. Although some may say people have a right to personal business, it is not personal if it is posted to the public. To avoid people from looking at one’s social media, keep the page

Private information that was previously segregated now becomes easily accessible to employers, colleagues, recruiters, and clients, among other perhaps unintended audiences” (Abril, 2012, para. 4). Yes, most social media sites attain privacy settings but one must always remember there are hiccups in everything on the internet and no guarantees leaks will not occur.

In the article “College Kids Have Too Much Privacy,” Michele Willins explains how FERPA, a program that means parents have no right to know how their children are doing in school, is not only hurting college students’ future but also how frightening it can be to oblivious parents who have no idea about this privacy policy. Even the best students can be academically challenged when they go to college. Parents would have no idea that their child is struggling because he or she has succeeded in school thus far. Even if college students are not the best in a school setting, the parents would have no idea if he or she is failing out of classes because officials are not allowed to let the parents know. This marks a major flaw in the FERPA organization.

The article “Youthful Indiscretions: Should Colleges Protect Social Network Users from Themselves and Others?” is written by Dana L. Fleming and appears in the winter 2008 issue of the New England Journal of Higher Education. Fleming’s objective with this article is to show college students the dangers of social networking sites, and at the same time she is advising parents on the social networking world.

Higher education law attorney Dana L. Fleming voices her controversial opinion in favor of institutionalized involvement in social network protection in her article “Youthful Indiscretions: Should Colleges Protect Social Network Users from Themselves and Others?” (Fleming). Posted in the New England Journal of Higher Education, winter of 2008 issue, Fleming poses the question of responsibility in monitoring students’ online social networking activities. With a growing population of students registering on social networks like Facebook and MySpace, she introduces the concern of safety by saying, “like lawmakers, college administrators have not yet determined how to handle the unique issues posed by the public display of their students’

However, some people may think them looking at an applicant’s social media profile is an invasion of privacy but they should know that anything they put out on the internet is public information for anyone to see. Social media can be used as a great asset in figuring out who to admit to their college and who to give the job everyone applied for. Colleges and employers should continue to use

In high school, a parent has to be aware of everything that goes on with their child's life. Then their child grows up and blossoms into an adult that continues their education into college. There in college the parents of these blossoms are no longer as aware of what goes on with their school life. These parents have little control over what goes on academically and socially while their adult children are in college. In the article, “College Kids Have Too Much Privacy” Michele Willins shows us that parents have a right to know what is going on with their children’s college life.

This can result in severe consequences for both the students and the school. Colleges such as Harvard have been denying the entrance of students due to inappropriate and explicit content posted on social media. Many high schools have begun hiring outside companies to monitor their student’s posts. The question arises: By doing so, are they violating these students First Amendment Rights? Approximately 92 percent of teenagers say they use their electronic devices daily (Ray Bendici, “Schools Step up Social Media Monitoring”). Twenty-four percent of which say they constantly use the internet. Although schools have a good intention for monitoring student’s accounts; to stop bullying, to find racist and explicit content, and to stop any threats; some schools go so far that they are violating both their student's privacy and First Amendment

While students have never had full rights in the eyes of the law, they are especially limited today. For example, post students make on social media sites, such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, are often monitored, and can ever produce in-school consequences for the students. In one case in 2012, a Minnesota student was forced to give the school her facebook account password after she wrote a post calling a hall-monitor “mean’ (Wheeler). This is a problem because her right to privacy was violated. Even though the right to privacy is not explicitly mentioned with the constitution it is implicitly

Because adolescents are growing up with more access to social networking, texting and instant messaging on various sites have become prime means of communication. While this is not necessarily bad, many people feel the need to over-share things about their personal lives online. More and more people are using Facbeook and more and more employers are using Facebook to scope out potential employees. If there are inappropriate pictures and comments all over someone’s Facebook page, they are more likely to not receive the job. Some students get in trouble for things they post on Facebook and Twitter. Some users are beginning to notice this and have started deactivating their accounts to regain a sense of privacy. CNN’s article “The anti-social network: Life without Facebook”, states that some students who are trying to maintain a professional image for future employment are deleting their pages.

Social Media is a current way in which people are using to interact with one another daily. Since the launch of various Social Networking Sites (SNS) its been a huge attraction in a new way to share information with others and correspond with interests of your choice in many different forms. Although social media sites allow users to share information with friends and other sites on the internet, many people are unaware of how their privacy is getting out. Now that the expansion of global connection through these social media networking sites are so highly present in todays society, giving us easy access to information, the lack of one's privacy is being diminished. Everyday peoples privacy rights are

According to Renee Fricks, vice president of human resources at Imperial Capital, “Your social media profile can be more revealing that your resume” (Cohen, 10). Social media has become a normal use of technology of an average college student. From Facebook and Twitter, there is a means of connecting students on diverse planes via the Internet. This allows employers to search any potential job candidate’s social media to investigate user’s posts to determine if they fit their position and hold themselves with high moral regard. If students do not monitor what they post, potential employers may be turned away because of inappropriate pictures, conversations, or other behaviors. Learning about proper social media uses can prevent qualified candidates from losing job opportunities.

A second factor, social media could also have a huge effect on education. The use of social networks such as facebook and twitter are very well known, especially by most college students. David Gewirtz realized that some of the people who see a personal social media website could be a friend, potential employer, and even a stranger. Gewirtz warned most students to monitor what they are posting online. He says “ You could be a teenager today who is 15 and say inappropriate things, and then as an adult looking for a job as a CEO.” He is sending people a warning to monitor what they post because what is on that website might potentially ruin a chance of employment. (Michelle 1-2). College

“As the use of social media increases and becomes an integral part of nearly every student’s life, problems arise when student expression on these sites turns into threats against the school or other students, implicating both student safety and the speaker’s right to free speech” (Hughes 208). There’s no denying that social media has become a part of most people’s daily life. We have sites like Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, Facebook, Reddit, YouTube, LinkedIn, etc. These websites, or apps, allow us to express ourselves in any way possible, whether it’s supporting families who lost a member in a mass shooting, trying to impeach the latest president, or donating to those who are victims of natural disasters. It’s not always that social

Employers and schools nowadays evaluate applicants from their social media accounts. For example, the applicant’s Facebook profile could be used to get information such as age, residence and even academic history. What worries Joanna Stern in the article, “Demanding Facebook Passwords May Break Law, Say Senators” is the fact that employers and schools require employees and students to give their Facebook passwords to access their profiles. This practice poses unanticipated legal liabilities. Thus, government officials have rose against the practice. Indeed, requiring a user to share Facebook account’s password for access to the user’s profile is morally wrong and does not meet its intended objective.