Secure Online Families | Part 4: Anonymity
This is the 4th article in a 9-part series | Keeping our children safe is a high priority for most parents and guardians, and this increasingly includes online security.
While the ability to be anonymous can be freeing, it can have some pretty negative consequences.
Risks
Being anonymous can have some great benefits, including:
- Identity protection
- Ability to easily to speak one’s mind for good
- Evade predators and other ill-intended people
But these benefits can be abused, leading to problems like:
- Speaking one’s mind freely to hurt others
- Increase in cyber-bullying
- etc.
Youth can face these problems as both:
- Victims
- Aggressors
Solutions
To minimize the negative effects of being anonymous, we teach children to:
- Be civil online, including when we’re anonymous
- Stand up for others who are being anonymously bullied
- Develop capabilities to healthily manage situations where they’re being targeted
Just as importantly, we should be there to comfort and help our children when they’re going through difficult times.
The Series:
- Part 1: Introduction (Dec 18th)
- Part 2: Cyber Bullying (Dec 18th)
- Part 3: Social Media (Dec 26th)
- Part 4: Anonymity (Jan 2nd)
- Part 5: False Information (Jan 8th)
- Part 6: Violent Media (Jan 15th)
- Part 7: Sex/Pornography (Jan 22nd)
- Part 8: Comprehensive Solutions (Jan 29th)
- Part 9: Conclusion & Additional Resources (Feb 5th)
My Credentials
I work in InfoSec and have published a couple of academic articles while finishing my masters degree.
[This story has been adapted to article format from my site securefamilies.org]
