Reading recent headlines regarding Facebook just about made me regurgitate twice in my own mouth.  As sick as that may sound, I don’t believe it is as sick as the headlines were.  As I skimmed through a few articles about Facebook and their wild and crazy idea allowing children 12 and under to use their site, I wanted to do nothing more than scream.  As if our children have nothing better to do than spend their youth on social networking sites like Facebook.

Between child predators, cyber-bullies, social pressures and more, why would Facebook even think this is a good idea for our youth?  This past May, Consumer Reports published the below in an article regarding a study they did:

“Children under 13 aren’t supposed to use Facebook. We project from our survey that the company closed about 800,000 such accounts in the last year.

But some 5.6 million underage kids still have accounts, our survey suggests. And 800,000 minors were harassed or subjected to other forms of cyberbullying on Facebook.

Our survey also shows that most parents who knew their preteen used Facebook had not discussed online threats with them or “friended” them, while up to a third did nothing to keep up with their children’s Facebook activities”

Targets: 11- to 13-year-olds. The least vigilant parents in our survey were those with children under 13 on Facebook. “The kids most often targeted are 11- to 13-year-olds, because they’re more naive and less likely to tell an adult about it,” says Nils Frederiksen, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office. Its Child Predator Unit recently charged William Ainsworth, 53, with using phony Facebook identities to lure hundreds of girls as young as 11, whose profiles revealed that they were vulnerable because of trouble at home or school. Ainsworth allegedly solicited nude photos from some and arranged to meet for sex. He has pleaded not guilty.

Investigators interviewed more than 30 girls; almost all said they were using Facebook with little or no parental knowledge when they communicated with the predator. Most used cell phones or other mobile devices, making supervision difficult.”

The above study alone is good enough for me to realize that allowing children under age 13 to use Facebook is a very bad idea!  It’s dangerous just like many other social networking sites.  Adults need to use sites like these with caution, never mind a minor who may not fully understand the risks associated with it.  As adults, we understand that one needs to use discretion when announcing certain things on Facebook.  Examples include leaving for vacation and letting the whole world know your house will be vacant.  Something as simple as announcing the date of your wedding and where you plan to honeymoon or pictures you post while on your honeymoon can lead to a break in.

Food for thought:  According to an article published on Parents.com, “based on the identity of the perpetrator, there are three distinct types of kidnapping: kidnapping by a relative of the victim or “family kidnapping” (49 percent), kidnapping by an acquaintance of the victim or “acquaintance kidnapping” (27 percent), and kidnapping by a stranger to the victim or “stranger kidnapping” (24 percent).”  That said, the majority of abductions that occur are by a relative or acquaintance.  Well now, your 9-year-old son or daughter is on Facebook.  You, as the parent decide on who they should or should not friend on Facebook.  Your child’s aunt, uncle, maybe a close friend or neighbor wants to friend them and you allow it.  Now, your child and a friend head out to the movies with one another.  They post it on Facebook, or better yet, your child’s friend posts it on Facebook because you don’t allow your child to post where they are going.  Unfortunately, their friend decides to “tag” them on their Facebook profile…  Enough said.

If by chance, Mark Zuckerberg did in fact “hint” about opening the social network to minors, as noted in an msnbc article written by Helen A.S. Popkin, he should be ashamed of himself and think about the potential consequences.  Either that, or he is still far to young and naive to understand what the repercussions could be.  He may need some social monitoring on his profile as well…again… just food for thought…
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