WEEK 13

THE ONLINE FOOTPRINT - WHAT'S NEXT? MY SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER?

Wow. The articles that I read regarding Internet privacy were extremely eye-opening.

I feel like I have a decent sized online footprint. I have Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube that I actively engage with every single day. However I do not have a personal website. That is actually something that I need to put on my to-do list.

On Instagram and Facebook, I share the highlights of my life. I might take a picture with a friend, a picture of my cappuccino or simply just an update about my life. I do often post on social media.

A visitor could find out my location, where I live, my job, where I attend school, the clubs/organizations that I am a part of.

I have given out my number and e-mail address to every single social media site that I use. Simply because it is one of the "steps" when making your account. The sites claim that it is a "safer" route and allows for there to be some kind of back-up to information. Reflecting on it now, it is kind of stupid.

I think social media can be amazing. I also think social media can be very toxic. In order to healthily use social media, you need to only follow or connect with accounts that you actually like. You want to enjoy the content that you are seeing. If seeing someone's posts or pictures makes you upset, jealous, or unhappy you need to immediately unfollow/unfriend them. This is where the user makes the decision to use social media in a positive or negative way.

I think social media can make people depressed and isolated. People think that everyone's social media is an accurate reflection of their life. Spoiler alert: it's not. It is only the "highlights" of everyone's life. So you might think that Sally has an incredible, fun life but actually she is very unhappy.

It was one of my New Year's resolutions to make my Instagram less about ME and more about MY LIFE. So I post pictures of what I am doing, the people I am with, the things I am experiencing, etc. Simply not a picture of me. I also have unfollowed or unfriended accounts that I do not enjoy seeing.

It has been a cleansing process for me and now I love social media and do not really feel saddened at all.

https://www.centreformentalhealth.org.uk/blog/centre-mental-health-blog/anxiety-loneliness-fear-missing-out-social-media