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SOCIAL MEDIA APPSThe Good, The Bad and The Ugly
Officer Chuck CollierSchool Resource Officer
Dublin Jerome HS
Great websites to use for more information
smartsocial.com*
www.commonsensemedia.org
www.familyeducation.com
educateempowerkids.org
*Source of most this information
What makes an app good or bad?
Good App Characteristics
• Age restrictions• Age verification• Good user feedback• Easy to use privacy
settings
Bad App Characteristics
• Anonymity• No age verification• Bad reputation• Only work with location
services on
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These apps are usually okay to use• Facebook• Messenger• Instagram (beware of Finstagram)• Twitter• YouTube• ZeeMee (college applications)• LinkedIn
Generally Good Apps
Apps that can be either good or bad• Minecraft• Musical.ly• SnapChat• HouseParty• YouTube
Questionable Apps
Why are they questionable?
Houseparty- unmoderated chat, up to 8 peopleMinecraft- bullying, virusesMusical.ly- adult songsSnapChat- enable “ghost” mode so you can’t be trackedYouTube- adult, inappropriate content
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These apps are mostly bad for kids• Calculator Private Photo• Secret• Whisper• Tumblr• ooVoo• Afterschool• Phhhoto• Ogle
Bad Apps
These apps are mostly bad for kids• Tinder• Omegle• Sarahah• Finstagram• Kik• Yellow• Ask.fm• Burn Book
Bad Apps
Why are they bad?
Calculator Private Photo- can hide photos and videosSecret- anonymous sharing, can lead to bullyingWhisper- anonymous, location sharingTumblr- fake names, pornographic imagesooVoo- video chat, can be used by predatorsAfterSchool- school-based, anonymous, drugs and bullyingPhhhoto- can’t be made private, videos shared openly
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Why are they bad?
Ogle- anonymous, location-based, bullying, predatorsTinder- hook-up appOmegle- anonymous text, video chatSarahah- anonymous, no way to report bad actionsKik- direct contact with unknown people, easy to pretendYellow- “Tinder for Teens”Ask.fm- anonymous questions can lead to bullyingBurn Book- anonymous texts, photos, school-based location
Actually talk with your kids• What apps are they using and why?• Have them show you how it works• Friend or follow every social media
account they have• Discuss potential for misuse, or
harm to self or others
Things we can do
Pay attention• Know their Google Play/App Store
usernames and logins• So you can see what apps
they’re downloading and using• You can read descriptions,
warnings, reviews and age restrictions
Things we can do