I don’t have any children, but many of my friends and relatives do. Nevertheless, several years ago, I advised the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office on their internet privacy program called ‘Protecting Our Kids’. It shocked them when I demonstrated how easy it would be for kids to circumvent all of their ‘watchdog’ procedures.
So, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this story in which a high school in Connecticut accessed students’ non-secure social media pages, then presented some of their findings at an assembly.
I think you can already imagine the reaction of some of the students who were featured.
But the creators of the presentation took care only to use images that would not embarrass or offend anyone. Had they done otherwise, that would be another story.
As it stands, my comment to the offended students – and their parents – is, sometimes, we don’t realize the favor someone is doing for us. If those same students think twice the next time they’re about to post an item, then the school has accomplished its goal.
Besides…did the message really get through? Here’s what some of the angry students did first:
They complained on Twitter.