Do your teens (and tweens) really know how to keep personal information safe on social networking sites? Do they know what the privacy risks are? Don’t be so sure. Two recent pieces of research, by Internet privacy services provider TRUSTe and online portal MSN, have uncovered some troubling teen behaviours online. 

TRUSTe found that 42% of teens ‘sometimes’ or ‘always’ accept social networking friend requests from strangers. Bad move: this doesn’t just potentially give dodgy characters access to personal information such as home addresses and cell phone numbers, but could impact your child’s reputation. 

Ntombezinhle Modiselle, Intel’s Public Relations Manager – and a mother herself – believes there’s no stopping the social media juggernaut.

But when it comes to Facebook, Mxit and other social networking sites, she puts clear rules in place to make sure her teens are protecting their privacy.  This will not only give the parents peace of mind  but will continue to give the kids accesses to tools which when use right is can give them a great advantage to the development and education.  

1. Talk to your kids about privacy.

“Nowadays, online privacy is like sex, drugs, or any basic issue with your kids: you have to keep the communication channels open,” says Ntombezinhle. “Have honest discussions with your children about why it’s dangerous to let their information fall into the wrong hands.” Tell your children they don’t have to tell everything to the whole world – especially not physical addresses, phone numbers, or their location. 

 2. Join their world.

Use Facebook yourself. Install Mxit on your phone. TRUSTe suggests you ask your kids to show you how to join. By going through the sign-up process together - and discussing your own privacy needs – you’ll have the perfect opportunity to talk with your teen about the concerns that you have for their privacy. Otherwise, ask your teen to help you adjust your privacy settings. This will give you a good sense of how ‘savvy’ they are. 

3. ‘Friend’ or ‘follow’ your teen – but don’t be a stalker!

If your kids know you can see what they’re posting online, it may well make them more careful. But the fastest way to have your teen hide info from you or “unfriend” you online is to invade their digital space! In other words, says Ntombezinhle, don’t friend their friends – although friending their parents is quite acceptable! 

4. The Internet never forgets.

What happens in Vegas no longer stays in Vegas or in Sun City or Rosebank – it gets posted on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter! Anything your teen posts now can be visible years from now to teachers or potential employers – even if they deleted the original posts. Remind them that fun is fun, but today’s indiscretions could come back to haunt them later.

5. Teach them to never friend strangers.

“This sounds obvious, but you’d be horrified to know how many of our teens accept random friend requests from people they don’t know,” says Zinhle (according to TRUSTe, as many as 42%).

“They think they met them at some party, or they’re a friend of a friend, and they don’t want to appear rude.” 

But letting a stranger into your social network gives these people access to personal information and open a direct line of communication. A good rule of thumb: only accept friend or follow requests from individuals they have met in person.

6. Be careful what you say about others.

Your teen wouldn’t want someone to upload an embarrassing photo of them online – so they should respect the privacy of others as well. On social networks, sensitive and hurtful information can spread to an entire class or even school in a matter of hours. Gossip on social networking sites is especially dangerous and something to be avoided.

Ultimately, says Ntombezinhle, social networking is like life itself: a little hands-on parenting isn’t necessarily a bad thing. “As parents, it’s our responsibility to keep a watchful eye for unsafe behaviours. Check in on your teen’s social networking activity unannounced from time to time, as you might do in any number of offline situations. It will keep them honest... and safe.”