Of course individuals can (usually) set their privacy settings to manage their desired level of security, but what about their friends. On some sites, there are a certain amount of things you can always see. It's unfortunate, but when situations like my friend's happen, you realize that the Internet is another place where we have to be our brother or sister's keeper. It becomes a time when you have to look out for your friend (or whoever) by locking your social spaces up and watching what you say and do more carefully.
A year ago, if I looked myself up online, I would see me listed under my webinar and that would be the end of it...now I see the list of all my social media activities. Whether you are a SMJ (social media junkie) or have joined just a few social media sites (or communities), google yourself...find out how accessible you really are. When I did this recently, I felt like I had spread over the web like a virus, but the truth is that I am such small (barely there) potatoes compared to some of my friends and colleagues. Being on multiple sites for their varying reasons and values certainly has its advantages, but I still exercise caution and good judgement. Don't get me wrong, there is plenty of wiggle room to still be as transparent as I want to be, mostly. Looking out for my friend on the one site she belongs to is hardly an inconvenience to my SMJness, but nevertheless, I still make sure I practice safe socialness on the Internet!
Another blog I found on the topic that was interesting:
Do we really need privacy controls in Social Media? by Alexandar van Elsa
http://vanelsas.wordpress.com/2008/07/10/do-we-really-need-privacy-controls-in-social-media/
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